Sean Astin Confirmed Bob's Fate In 'Stranger Things' & We're So Sad

In a time where finding someone to look up to on TV is becoming increasingly difficult, I think we can all agree that Bob Newby was the hero we never knew we needed — that is, until he was brutally attacked and eaten by a Demodog right in front of our gosh d*ng eyes. That's right, of all the dark, twisted, and strange things we've seen on the aptly titled Stranger Things, watching Bob die was arguably the worst and — of course — fans of the show are already asking: Will Bob be in Stranger Things Season 3? I mean, we did get #JusticeForBarb in Season 2, so who's to say we won't see some #JusticeForBob next year? ...Bob himself, that's who.

Unfortunately for all of us diehard Bob stans at home, the actor who plays Bob, Sean Astin, recently confirmed in an interview with Variety there are no plans for his character to return to Hawkins in Season 3; when asked whether Bob is, in fact, dead, Astin says,

Oh, Bob is good and dead. But there’s no need for [#JusticeforBob]. Bob has justice. He died in the line of duty. Bob had a skill set equal to the moment, and he did his job to save his girl and her family because he knew how, so that’s it. It’s a sad, tragic death. It might be nice to have a little moment for him, but they gave him that, too — that little drawing that Will does of Bob Newby, Superhero. That’s a better hashtag than #JusticeforBob. Everybody knows what Bob did, and Bob died heroically.

Sadly, it looks like we saw the last of the lovable goofball when he heroically sacrificed himself to save Joyce, Hopper, and the kids from the Demodogs in the penultimate episode of Season 2. I guess we can still hope there is some preserved footage of him from his JVC that we'll get to see next season. If you're reading Duffer brothers, take notes.

Though he is "good and dead," Bob nevertheless made a huge impact on the fans of Stranger Things. When asked whether or not he expected his character to be so popularly embraced by fans of the show, Astin tells Variety,

The Duffers and [director] Shawn Levy were so insistent that [I had] no idea how much people are going to like Bob ... The positive response to Bob has been heartwarming for me, but it also kind of forced me to think about what it was that they liked so much. And what I’ve kind of appreciated way more after watching the response is how much people want and need for there to be nice, decent people in the world. And that a stepfather or a wannabe stepdad who can come into your life and may be a little bit awkward but just wants to make it work — there’s no hesitation from Bob. Bob isn’t questioning where the relationship is going. Bob is all in.

It's really no surprise fans of the series love Bob so much; even the creators and writers of Stranger Things liked the goofy character so much they decided to keep him alive until Episode 8 when, originally, he was supposed to die earlier in the season.

Astin isn't upset about his character's death either, though; when asked about it, he tells Variety, "It was pretty clear when I got the part that Bob wasn’t going to make it," adding later, "I’ve had my time in the sun, and now I just sit back and have to wait for a year to binge Season 3 with the rest of the world."

Just because Bob is out of the picture for Season 3, doesn't mean Sean Astin doesn't have some hopes for what will happen next year in Hawkins, though. As for what he'd like to see in the next chapter of Stranger Things, Astin says,

I heard Millie say something in an interview about wanting her and Max to be friends. I want to see that so badly. Steve is pretty special. It’ll be interesting to see what they can do now that it’s locked in that Steve is selfless, that he’s a hero. And Will has just got to have a break. It would be great if Will and Joyce got to do something that was nice and relaxing — like get a pedicure or something.

Yes to all of the above (and a Joyce/Hopper relationship). I guess until then we'll just have to take a page from Sean Astin's book and "wait for a year to binge Season 3 with the rest of the world."

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