‘Stranger Things’ star David Harbour once thought of killing a cat for his role

By IANS

LOS ANGELES: Actor David Harbour, who plays the chief of police, Jim Hopper in the sci-fi horror OTT series ‘Stranger Things’, recently shared that he once considered killing a cat for real to get into his character for a role, reports Newsweek.

The 47-year-old actor told GQ magazine that he is “very much trained in classical American method acting,” a technique used by a number of actors to emotionally identify with the characters they portray.

According to Newsweek, to prepare for such roles using the method pioneered by Russian theatre practitioner Konstantin Stanislavski, actors often embody the character in question, often living in the way they would have lived for extended periods of time.

The Method, as it is usually referred to, has divided the entertainment industry over the years, with some actors being revered for the performances they’ve pulled off using the immersive practice, while others have expressed little or no patience with it.

“When I was younger it’s so embarrassing but I remember playing that famous Scottish King. And being like, ‘I’m gonna kill a cat’ or something: ‘I’m gonna go murder something to know what it feels like to murder,'” he recalled during his chat with GQ.

“I didn’t actually do it, obviously,” the New York-born star added. “Not only is that stuff silly, it’s dangerous, and it actually doesn’t produce good work.”

Newsweek further reports that in the same vein, he pointed at Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis as a respected example of a method actor. Although David loves Daniel’s work, he didn’t hold back from saying that the latter’s process doesn’t make any sense to him.

Harbour further said, “He’s an extraordinary actor who I’m captivated and fascinated by. (But) when he explains his process it sounds like nonsense to me.”