Stranger Things is a hit science fiction television series streamed on Netflix. It was originally released in 2016 and has gone through three seasons. Many questions are still left unanswered since the season 3 finale and viewers cannot wait for season four to come out in mid-2022 and are already thinking theories on what might happen in the upcoming season. The series is based in Hawkins County, Indiana in the 1980s era. The premise of the show is based on a group of teenage friends who witness multiple supernatural forces and secret government exploits. The group spends the series searching for clues and answers while also finding many twists and turns and surprises in the process to eventually unravel the extraordinary mystery at the end of each season.
The Stranger Things cast consists of some well-thought-out developed characters played by very talented actors who get viewers on the edge of their seats and have the show come to life. In every show, there is always at least one antagonist and in Stranger Things, one of the antagonists is Billy Hargrove. The role of Billy is played by Dacre Montgomery and what many fans of the popular series do not realize, is how similar Dacre is to his character Billy.
About Dacre Montgomery's Character Billy Hargrove
While many fans are confused on some aspects of details that go on in Stranger Things, one detail viewers are not confused about is why Billy Hargrove acts the way he does. Despite Billy Hargrove is one of the main characters on the show he is also one of the antagonists on the show. When we were first introduced to Billy Hargrove in season, he was considered the tertiary (not the most important) antagonist. That changed in season three when Billy became the central (more important) antagonist.
Dacre Montgomery’s character Billy Hargrove echoes his father’s abusive behavior onto his stepsister Max Mayfield (played by Sadie Sink). They were caught arguing by her friends Dustin Henderson (played by Gaten Matarazzo) and Lucas Sinclair (played by Caleb McLaughlin), Mike Wheeler (played by Finn Wolfhard) and Will Byers (played by Noah Schnapp). Billy would get angry at Max if she was late or whenever she was seen hanging out with her friends and blamed her for needing to move to Hawkins County.
While Billy and Max did have a complicated relationship throughout seasons two and three, they do eventually make amends a little too late. Billy saves Max’s friend Eleven from The Mind Flayer by sacrificing himself. Billy’s last words were to Max telling her “sorry” which was his apology to her for all the trouble Billy put Max and her friends through. Despite Billy not being loved by many viewers, the scene was very heart-wrenching, emotional and a sentimental moment between Billy and Max.
Unfortunately, since Billy did die in the season three finale, we will not get to see more of Dacre Montgomery or his character, Billy Hargrove, in season 4 of Stranger Things. So, we will never get to see what newfound relationship that could have been for Billy and his little stepsister Max Mayfield. Knowing the kind of personality and characteristics Billy has, how does Dacre relate to his role of Billy?
How Dacre Montgomery Relates to Billy Hargrove
Typically, actors share some similarities and differences with the characters they play in their television shows or movie roles. Considering the kind of personality Billy Hargrove possess in Stranger Things, it would be hard to imagine Dacre Montgomery sharing any kind of similarities to him, right? However, Dacre recalls a moment while attending a prestigious acting school.
Dacre went back and forth considering attending acting school to pursue a potential career in acting. The outcome ended up deciding to go to acting school and if it were not forgoing, we would not have come to know him as Billy Hargrove on Stranger Things. Since he did an incredible job playing an antagonist on the show and getting viewers to dislike his character, one would think, the acting school was a piece of cake for Dacre. The truth is, it was not a smooth sailing beginning for Dacre Montgomery.
Dacre attended the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, which is a very prestigious drama school in Australia (a country Darce is originally from). Prior to attending, Dacre had been fired from his job and his girlfriend at the time decided that they need to "take a break". This left Dacre Montgomery feeling heartbroken and miserable when he should be been getting excited to attend the prestigious acting school. So Dacre was not in a good mindset when he began at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, who could be if they were put in Dacre's shoes?
This led Dacre Montgomery to become very arrogant and get into lots of trouble at the school. He remembers refusing to learn Feldenkrais and was not interested in learning the vocal techniques. He also would act out and cause scenes, which led to Dacre nearly being kicked out of the school three times. The staff had enough of Dacre's behavior and gave him an ultimatum, he is to come back in September with a better perspective, or he is not welcome back at the school. This gave Dacre the wake-up call he needed to get his act together over the summer holidays, and he came back with a clearer and better perspective.
Thankfully Dacre Montgomery got his act together to graduate from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts move to the United States of America and pursue an acting career. If he did not, who knows what could have been and could have been cast to play the role of Billy Hargrove. Fans of Stranger Things really can never know for sure what goes on behind the scenes when the cast is not filming the show and what surprising facts about the cast of Stranger Things they can learn.
