Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour are making it clear: There’s no bad blood here. At the Stranger Things Season 5 premiere in Los Angeles on Thursday, the longtime costars arrived together and embraced on the red carpet.
The sweet red carpet moment comes nearly a week after the Daily Mail published a report claiming that The Electric State star and new mom filed “a harassment and bullying claim” against the Grand Turismo actor. Per the outlet’s source, Brown’s lawsuit was complete with “pages and pages of accusations,” and the investigation “went on for months.” The 21-year-old’s alleged claims were publicized following the release of singer-songwriter Lily Allen’s new album, West End Girl, on which she appears to accuse Harbour, her estranged husband, of infidelity.
Yahoo reached out to representatives for Brown and Harbour but did not receive an immediate response.
Brown and Harbour have worked closely together since September 2015, when they began filming the first season of Stranger Things in Atlanta. The Enola Holmes star was just 11 years old at the time. On the record-breaking Netflix series, Brown stars as Eleven, a telekinetic adolescent who escapes from a testing laboratory, before finding refuge with Harbour’s character, Jim Hopper, the local police chief. A father-daughter relationship develops as the show progresses, and Hopper ultimately adopts Eleven.
Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbor in 2016. (Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
While the alleged lawsuit may suggest otherwise, Brown and Harbour seem to be on just as good terms as their onscreen counterparts. The English actress spoke highly of her costar while chatting with outlets at the season 5 premiere.
“I obviously have a really special bond with David because we have a father-daughter relationship, and we do every scene together,” Brown told Entertainment Tonight. “And you’ll really get to see that, you know, in Season 5. It’s been so special to have him along the journey for me.”
She also told Extra of their relationship: “We’re so lucky to have each other. The show means so much to the both of us, to everyone here. I mean, this has been the last 10 years of our lives.”
Harbour had similar praise for Brown. The Thunderbolts* actor gushed about the entire cast, including his onscreen daughter.
“I adore her,” Harbour told Entertainment Tonight. “And I’ve been proud to watch all of them grow up and become such great artists. I mean, I doubt it’ll be the last time we see each other in the world or work together. … This particular family, and this particular project, has been so special, and we’ve gotten to know each other so deeply.”
Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour at the “Stranger Things” Season 5 afterparty. (Kevin Winter/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)
Stranger Things cocreator Ross Duffer weighed in on the harassment and bullying claim at Thursday night’s premiere, as his brother and fellow cocreator Matt Duffer stood next to him.
“Obviously, you understand I can’t get into personal on-set matters, but I will say we’ve been doing this for 10 years with this cast, and at this point they’re family and we deeply care about them,” Duffer told the Hollywood Reporter. “So, you know, nothing matters more than just having a set where everyone feels safe and happy.”
Shawn Levy, the director and executive producer of Stranger Things, also addressed the alleged lawsuit at the premiere. Levy told the outlet that he and his crew prioritize “a respectful workplace where everyone feels comfortable and safe.”
“I’ve read a bunch of stories and they range from wildly inaccurate to … there’s so much noise around it,” he said. “But the truth is that we view this crew and this cast as family, and so we treat each other with respect, and that’s always been bedrock.”
The first volume of the final Stranger Things season debuts on Netflix on Nov. 26. Volumes 2 and 3 are set to hit the streamer on Dec. 25 and Dec. 31. The third and final volume will premiere in theaters along with its Netflix release.