David Harbor has resigned from “Behemoth!”, the new drama film from “Michael Clayton” director Tony Gilroy and Searchlight Pictures.
A representative for Searchlight Pictures confirmed to Variety that Harbor has stepped back from the role.
Harbor was scheduled to co-star with Pedro Pascal and Olivia Wilde. People familiar with the project said Harbor was overwhelmed by the series ending of “Stranger Things,” a month-long episodic series and a global watershed moment with intense press scrutiny, and stepped away from the project to take a break. Mr. Haber’s replacement was not immediately known, but the role has been recast, two people familiar with the matter said.
A representative for Harbor did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Plot details are still scarce, but the official logline for “Behemoth!” has been released. The film follows “a family of musicians who return to Los Angeles” and is simply described as “a love letter to film music and the people who create it.” Gilroy wrote and directed the film. He also serves as a producer for Sanne Wohlenberg.
Throughout his career, Harbor has remained very open about his struggles with mental health. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of 26 after a severe episode. He told Variety in a 2022 interview that while there is now a growing conversation about wanting “an open dialogue about mental illness,” the focus is often solely on “tragedy.”
“The color of that conversation needs to be broader in every sense of the word,” he added. “We have pathologised this idea of normality and the reality is that everyone has different experiences and we need to appreciate that.”
Harbor is best known for playing Jim Hopper on Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” The sci-fi drama series, which premiered on the streamer in 2016, just concluded its fifth and final season with a two-hour finale. Other recent credits include films such as “Thunderbolts,” “Working Man,” and “Gran Turismo,” as well as television shows such as “Marvel Zombies” and “Creature Commandos.”
The story was first reported by Hollywood-centric social media gossip account Deuxmoi.
