Since its initial release in 2016, Stranger Things has become somewhat of a phenomenon, not only receiving major critical acclaim for its innovation and storytelling, but also earning equal praise in the media. The Netflix original series is easily one of the most influential shows in pop culture right now. Each season tops the one that came before it, and the show’s creators, The Duffer Brothers, are constantly leaving audiences on the edge of their seats. Earlier this year, Stranger Things 4 was released, introducing a new villain to the plot, Vecna, one of the most dangerous and sinister characters we’ve seen come from The Upside Down. Season 4 is widely credited as the show’s best season yet and has even received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series.
In addition to the writing and original storytelling, Stranger Things’s major success is widely due to how beloved the actors are by the public. Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour, Winona Ryder, Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Gaten Matarazzo, Joe Keery, Natalia Dyer, and Charlie Heaton are the incredibly talented actors who make up the starring cast of Stranger Things. Despite how much we love seeing these actors on the screen, there is also a solid and hilarious supporting cast in Stranger Things whom we can’t help but love. Here are the most memorable supporting characters on the show, ranked.
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9 Dr. Martin Brenner
Netflix
While he may be one of fan’s least favorite characters in Stranger Things, Dr. Brenner is an essential part of the show. Also known as “Papa,” Brenner has a fascination with supernatural abilities and has been training children in Hawkins Laboratory to develop their extraordinary gifts, which include being able to kill people with a look and make objects move with their minds. One of the children he works with is Eleven, portrayed by Millie Bobby Brown. Eleven is able to escape Dr. Brenner in season one, but he makes a big comeback in season four, which leads his character into an unfortunate fate. Actor Matthew Modine told Men’s Health that playing Dr. Brenner was “destructive” to his body, saying that he never wants to play someone like him again.
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8 Suzie
The character of Suzie was introduced to Stranger Things during the show’s third season after Dustin returns to Hawkins and eagerly tells his friends about the beautiful and genius girl he fell in love with at camp. Lucas, Mike, Will, Eleven, Max, and even Steve doubt the fact that Suzie is even real and imply that Dustin has made her up. To their surprise, however, Suzie ends up helping the gang save the world with her brilliance. During season four, we got a closer look into Suzie’s family and her undeniable allegiance to her Dusty-bun.
7 Murray Bauman
Murray is arguably one of the strangest characters to appear in the entire show. He is random and eccentric, but also helpful and a key factor in many of the characters’ successes. He is very knowledgeable about conspiracy theories and supernatural abilities, which plays a big role in Stranger Things’s earlier seasons, and his ability to speak Russian is extremely important to the show’s third and fourth seasons. During season four, Murray and Joyce go on an epic journey to Russia with the hopes of finding Hopper and returning home to the States.
6 Henry / Vecna
Jamie Campbell Bower does an incredible job playing one of the most exciting and dangerous villains in the show’s history, Vecna. In season four, we get a deep look into Eleven’s history and her life in Hawkins Laboratory before she met Mike and the rest of her friends. One of the people who tried to help her escape from Dr. Brenner and the lab as a whole was Henry, also known as 001. Eleven puts her trust in him, only to learn about Henry’s hidden agenda and plan to destroy the world. Eleven does all that she can to stop him from doing so and, in an intense battle, ends up creating Vecna.
5 Barb Holland
Unfortunately, in the world of Stranger Things, Barb may be the least lucky character of them all. Although her time on the show was short-lived, after being killed by a Demogorgon at Steve’s pool party in season one, her influence on the show is still prevalent today. Barb was Nancy Wheeler’s best friend and is still brought up in seasons two and four of the series. In season four, Vecna shows Nancy a flashback of the pool Barb died in, trying to make her feel guilty for her friend’s painful death. Audiences were enamored with the character of Barb when the show was initially released, especially on social media.
4 Erica Sinclair
Lucas’ little sister Erica is, without a doubt, one of the funniest supporting characters in the series. Her quick-witted one-liners, especially in season three, are amazing and overall her character adds so much comedic relief to the extreme life-or-death situations the rest of the characters are stuck in. During season three of Stranger Things, Erica spends most of her time with her friend Tina at Starcourt Mall, where she eventually teams up with Dustin, Steve, and Robin to hunt down the Russians who keep sending out top-secret messages from the mall.
3 Eddie Munson
Possibly the most beloved character to come out of season four of Stranger Things is the one and only Eddie Munson. The Hellfire Club leader and Dungeons and Dragons player is an extremely misunderstood outcast who has dedicated his high school career to rebelling against the norms, not caring what anybody thinks of him, and helping guide the upcoming Hellfire members to find their way. Behind the scary and off-putting shield Eddie puts up at school, he is actually an extremely sweet, caring, and brave person who, in the end, sacrificed himself to stand up for what he felt was right.
2 Robin Buckley
Maya Hawke is an incredible actress and her portrayal of Robin Hawke was a perfect addition to the Stranger Things cast. Robin is a clumsy, scattered high school student with little self-awareness but a heart of gold. She was introduced to the show in season three as Steve’s co-worker at Scoops Ahoy, but later turned into his best friend and a crucial part in all the characters’ journey to destroy whatever evil force was coming out of The Upside Down and threatening to destroy Hawkins. She says what everyone else is thinking, and fans love her for that.
1 Billy Hargrove
Coming in at number one on our list of best-supporting characters in Stranger Things is Billy Hargrove. To say that fans love this character and the actor that plays him is an understatement. Billy entered the show as Max’s rude and mentally abusive older brother who would take any opportunity to make her life more difficult. As his character developed, and we got to learn more about Billy’s life it’s easy to see why he is the way he is. During season three Billy is taken over by the Mind Flayer and becomes the show’s main antagonist. The rest of the season revolves around stopping Billy from killing more people and keeping Eleven safe from him. To everyone’s surprise Billy comes out the other end and dies sacrificing himself, saving Elle from the mind flayer.
