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These 'Stranger Things' Theories Could Explain What The Russians Are Planning
Spoilers ahead for Stranger Things 3. The Stranger Things 3 end credits scene moved the action from Hawkins, Indiana to Kamchatka, Russia, where both an American prisoner and a Demogorgon are being held. Obviously, one means there's more danger ahead, but Reddit theories about Stranger Things 3's end credits scene show fans are understandably hopeful the American is Hopper — still alive, just being held captive and unable to reach anyone in his hometown.
However, Hopper's fate isn't the only thing to consider when analyzing this scene. We don't even know that the "American" is him; it could be someone else entirely, and as you'll see below, there are plenty of other possibilities for who it could be. Aside from the American's identity, the credits scene could also explain why the Russians are trying to reopen the Upside Down. As fans on Reddit have connected, Erica kind of predicted that the Russians were keeping a Demogorgon in a cage, but the end credits scene confirmed it. And why they have the creature could be the key to figuring out their master plan.
So read on to see Reddit's best theories so far about what this all means. Murray Bauman would be proud.
Hopper Is The American
The most obvious answer to who the American is would be Hopper. But if you're wondering why the Soviets wouldn't want to sacrifice him to the Demogorgon, CSEnzley wrote that it's probably because Hopper has a direct connection to Eleven. Since she has powers over the Upside Down, the Russians may believe the Hawkins police chief could be useful in helping them get to her.
Dr. Brenner Is The American
Maybe it's too obvious that the American is Hopper, and Stranger Things is trying to throw us off. HouseHeisenb3rg postulates that the show is intentionally faking us out and Dr. Brenner is actually the American prisoner. Season 2 confirmed he's still alive, and considering how much he knows about the Upside Down, it would make sense that the Russians want to keep him as a resource. Hopper, meanwhile, may have jumped through the gate to the Upside Down just before it closed, and Season 4 will be all about trying to rescue him from the dimension.
Kali Is The American
El has powers that connect her to the Upside Down, so it stands to reason that so do the other children who were experimented on. So perhaps the Russians kidnapped one of them in order to carry out their plan. Redditor purhox_arhox believes that Kali, aka Eight, is the person that the Russians have captured. But considering we haven't met numbers one through seven, nine, or 10, the American prisoner could also be a character we haven't met yet.
Barb Is The American
Barb has been dead since Season 1, but fans are still holding out hope that there's a way she's alive. Firebrand76 believes that Barb is the American in the Russian cell and was placed there by Dr. Brenner, who created a fake dead body of Barb and placed it in the Upside Down, just like he did for Will in the quarry.
The Russians Are Collecting Demogorgons
The end credits scene showed that the Russians have at least one Demogorgon, but why? Well, thatuiowaguy started a conversation on Reddit about how the Russians might be collecting these creatures for some sort of military effort.
The Russians Are Using The Demogorgons To Invade America
Stranger Things 3 dealt with the Cold War tensions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. So when matthew-onreddit brought up that the Russians could be using the Demogorgons as a weapon, it led to people theorizing that the Soviets may be using the portal to the Upside Down in Hawkins to invade America. A Demogorgon army trained by Russians would be a hell of a way to start the fourth season.
The Russians Have Had Demogorgons For Years
In Season 1, Eleven entered the void on Dr. Brenner's orders, where she saw a Russian spy. As CaptainPiracy pointed out, this was the first time that El encountered a Demogorgon. Is it possible, then, that El was seeing a Demogorgon in Russia all the way back then (1983 or even earlier)? Maybe the gate to the Upside Down in Hawkins was formed by the Russians, rather than them finding it now.
The Demogorgon Will Be A Part Of Chernobyl In 'Stranger Things 4'
Stranger Things started in 1983 and each season after has jumped one year into the future. So the fourth installment should take place in 1986 — the same year as the Chernobyl accident in Ukraine. Alexie_the_ghost went as far as to wonder if the Demogorgon will be the reason for the nuclear explosion.
No matter what the end credits scene means for the future of Stranger Things, there's no denying that it left fans with a lot to consider.
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