Matthew Modine, who plays Dr. Brenner (a.k.a. Papa) in the Netflix hit Stranger Things believes that the doctor is still alive despite being shot multiple times the last time viewers saw him.
Modine detailed why he believes his time as Dr. Brenner is not done on Stranger Things. Keep in mind that he was attacked by a Demogorgon and presumably died off-screen only to return without much of an explanation as to why, so anything is possible. Modine hints that there's more to Brenner than what viewers have seen.
In a recent interview with Vulture, when asked if viewers would be right to presume that Dr. Brenner is dead, Modine was blunt. "No, I wouldn’t. Because I wouldn’t want him to be dead. Three things are curious to me: How did he survive the Demogorgon? How did he survive One? And when Eleven tries to use her power against Dr. Brenner after blowing three guards in the air, he unflinchingly thwarts her and says, 'You didn’t think it was going to be that easy, did you?' She couldn’t get it to work on him. Is there something more to Brenner than meets the eye?" Such a statement will likely initiate thousands of fan theories on the internet as to how Brenner may have survived several bullet wounds to his upper body much like he did the Demogorgon.
If Brenner does, in fact, survive his latest brush with death, the show definitely owes it to viewers an explanation regarding how he would have pulled off something like that. The Lord of the Rings franchise wasted no time explaining Gandalf wasn't permanently offed in The Fellowship of the Ring. Since the show only has one season left before it calls it quits, this isn't the time to build up more mystery. Now is the time to finally unveil the curtains to everything. Viewers finally got a real glimpse inside the Upside Down, and now it's crossing borders. Now that the worlds are colliding, they absolutely should explain how Dr. Brenner has and potentially will have survived supposedly fatal attacks.
Above all else, It was a brilliant move on the Duffer Brothers' part to bring back Dr. Brenner. By bringing him back, it re-introduces Eleven's roots, which make both her and her powers all the more intriguing to learn about. That whole subplot played a huge part in why fans tuned in. Hence, it would make sense that Dr. Brenner's time on the show wouldn't be over quite yet. Although if that were to be the case, they are going to have a lot of explaining to do.
Plus, now that the show has entered its final season, we may get to see more nuance to Brenner's character. Even though his main goal was to help Eleven reach her potential, it was because he cared about her more than anything. With whoever the show's big baddie is supposed to be in its last season, whether it's Vecna or someone even worse than him, Brenner could be the key to how the gang overcomes what's to come from the Upside Down.
Stranger Things can currently be watched on Netflix.
Source: Vulture