Millie Bobby Brown said she “felt safe” working with David Harbour on the set of Stranger Things, despite reports of on-set bullying involving the actor.
In an interview with Deadline published Friday, November 28, the 21-year-old actress shared insights into their working relationship on the Netflix series.
“Of course I felt safe I mean, we’ve worked together for 10 years,” Millie Bobby Brown told Deadline. “I feel safe with everyone on that set.”
Brown, 21, plays Eleven on Stranger Things, while David Harbour, 50, stars as Hawkins police chief Jim Hopper, who becomes Eleven’s adoptive father.
She explained that their close working relationship over the years, combined with the father-daughter dynamic of their characters, contributed to their strong bond on set.
“You naturally just… you know, you’ve been doing it for so long. We also play father and daughter, so naturally, we have a closer bond than the rest because we’ve had some really intense scenes together, especially in season 2,” she said.
Brown added, “David and I have a great relationship. We work really closely together in the scenes and preparing for the scenes, and I really am excited for everyone to see the labor of love and hard work we’ve put into the closure of our relationship and what that looks like.”
Earlier reports painted a different picture. The Daily Mail reported on November 1 that Brown “filed a harassment and bullying claim before they started shooting the last season” of the Netflix series. A source told the outlet that “there were pages and pages of accusations,” prompting an investigation that reportedly lasted months.
The filing allegedly did not include any accusations of sexual misconduct, and Brown is said to have had a representative on set while filming season 5. Us Weekly reached out to representatives for Brown, Harbour, and Netflix when the complaint first emerged.
Since the report was published, the Stranger Things co-stars have maintained a united front amid the allegations.
Just days after the news surfaced, Brown and Harbour attended the world premiere of Stranger Things season 5 in Los Angeles on November 6. In a video shared by both Netflix and the show’s official Instagram accounts, the actors were seen hugging and joking with each other, playfully interacting with fans on the red carpet.
Several weeks later, Brown spoke about her dynamic with Harbour in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, published November 26.
“We love this show with everything, and we value our friendship more than anything,” she said. When asked why she had stood united with Harbour after the allegations, Brown emphasized that it was nothing new.
“We’ve been doing that for the last 10 years,” she explained. “I mean, we have always been united in that.
David Harbour has co-starred alongside Millie Bobby Brown on Stranger Things since the series premiered in 2016.
As an adult working on a set that included many child actors, Harbour has previously expressed concern about the impact of sudden fame on young stars Brown was just 11 when filming began.
“I think the problem with young fame is that it’s very exciting, you know? It’s very exciting to have people think you’re a genius, but you don’t really want to be a genius at 11 years old,” Harbour told Esquire UK in a profile published November 1. “Any sort of protégé … I mean, look at what happened to Mozart or whatever. It’s not a long life.”
