Lucas Sinclair

We have a lot of rules in our party, but the most important is, 'Friends don't lie.' Never ever. No matter what.

— Lucas Sinclair to Max, November 3, 1984

Lucas Charles Sinclair, portrayed by Caleb McLaughlin is a major protagonist of Stranger Things. He is best friends with Mike Wheeler, Dustin Henderson, Will Byers, Eleven and Max Mayfield.

In 1983, Lucas's friend, Will mysteriously vanished so Lucas and the rest of his friends, Mike and Dustin went out to look for him, only to meet a girl named Eleven who had telekinetic powers. Lucas was wary of Eleven and found her weird and hardly believed in supernatural circumstances of Will's disappearance. However, when Lucas realized that Eleven was trying to protect him and his friends from the dangers of Hawkins National Laboratory and the Upside Down, his opinion of her changed and he became good friends with her. Lucas continued to help his friends and battle the Demogorgon until it was killed by Eleven. In the end, Lucas was reunited with Will and celebrated Christmas with his friends.

In 1984, following Max's arrival at Hawkins, he developed feelings for her, eventually forming a special bond with her. At the end, he and his friends assisted as a distraction to burn the Mind Flayer's external core for Eleven to close the Gate for good. A month later, Lucas attended his school's Snow Ball with his friends and started a romantic relationship with Max, as they danced and shared a kiss.

A year later, in 1985, Lucas has formed a romantic relationship with Max. His relationship with Max, along with Mike's relationship with Eleven, affected Will who wanted to continue living out days of childhood. When Lucas and his friends discovered the Mind Flayer had returned to Hawkins and started possessing people, including Max's stepbrother, Billy Hargrove, Lucas protected his friends and fought the Mind Flayer as it sought revenge on Lucas and his friends. Three months later, after the Mind Flayer's defeat, Lucas said goodbye to Will and Eleven as they moved away from Hawkins, before he and Dustin give their Dungeons & Dragons set to Lucas's little sister, Erica.

History

Main article: Lucas Sinclair/History

Personality and Traits

Lucas kept his friend group grounded in the plausible and the pragmatic. Even during fantastical D&D campaigns, Lucas was hesitant when speculating about the more unlikely events and scenarios. He was initially wary of Eleven and her powers, which further displayed a hesitation towards the abnormal. His sustained realist approach, even during unfathomable situations, indicated that he took the task of finding Will incredibly seriously, and was determined to find him. Despite sometimes putting on a defensive and reactionary shell, Lucas was ultimately sweet-natured and had good interests at heart.

In 1984, Lucas's personality took much of a big change. He has come to accept the abnormal and what is different from others. Last year's events also seemed to have haunted Lucas such as when he explains it all to Max Mayfield, he feels those events happened yesterday and wished he wasn't serious about it. Lucas also became more open to others as he invited Max to join his circle of friends, told her of last year's events, and sympathized with her troubled family life.

In 1985, Lucas has grown to be more mature, especially when it comes to his relationship with Max. He's also able to admit his mistakes and make up for them. Lucas also is willing to give advice especially to Mike when the latter starts dealing in problems with his relationship with Eleven. When Lucas learned that Max and Eleven spied on him and Mike, Lucas, who was shocked and upset with this at first, quickly forgives the girls, showing his forgiving nature. Lucas is also shown to playfully tease his friends on their relationships with their girlfriends; teasing Mike on the time he spends with Eleven and mocking Dustin by singing NeverEnding Story which he heard when Dustin sang the song to his long-distant girlfriend, Suzie.

Skills & Abilities

Lucas is very good at using his Wrist-Rocket slingshot. Lucas would use the Wrist-Rocket to fight enemies or protect his friends. Lucas once tried using the Wrist-Rocket against the Demogorgon, but it had no effect against the monster.

But later he used the Wrist-Rocket to save his girlfriend, Max from her Flayed stepbrother, Billy, and to keep the Mind Flayer from finding and killing his friends.

• Slingshot Proficiency: Lucas is shown to have skilled accuracy when using his Wrist Rocket against treats and danger situations. When a Demogorgon came after him and his friends, he was able to shoot 3 rocks at it and didn’t missed once. After trapping Flayed Billy in the Sauna room, he quickly pulled out his slingshot and managed to hit him on the right side of the face point blank knocking him briefly unconscious. He then shot at a Balloon to distract the Mind Flayer before it could spot his friends which saved them from their doom.
• Axe Proficiency: He is able to wield an axe with great proficiency in brute power and destructive features to kill strong enemies, as he performed feats such as stopping large incoming objects to break through. He grabbed the Axe Jonathan had to then use it to cut off the edge of the Mind Flayer’s tongue saving Eleven in the process.
• Brawling: Lucas isn’t so proficient in fighting but he could hold against opponents with his own barehands, he wrestled with Mike before Eleven broke it up and kicked Billy in the gut after being pinned by him.
• Expert Tactician: As being the Ranger in the group, Lucas knows many ways of seeking enemy territories and obtaining knowledge to strategize to his friends of how to avoid the outcomes that treats could persuade them with. He followed his compass to Hawkins lab, climbed up a tree to use his binoculars to view company trucks and finds out that those who seemed like natural people around their neighborhood were government spies stalking them to get after Jane/Eleven but he warned Mike and Dustin to get on their bikes and escaped before they caught them. Then when he asked for advice from his father about how to calm a girl down, he choose to tell Max the truth about everything of the Upside Down, demogorgans, and the government spies in secret knowing that they wouldn’t allow them to live if they heard him spill it to which Max nearly did but managed to get away with it allowing both of them survival. Once Lucas and the others broke into the grocery store to help stitch up Eleven’s leg, Max ordered him to look for a bowl but instead found fireworks and Max doubted it and said that Eleven was the best solution to put a stop to the Mind Flayer, but Lucas himself pointed out that she would need backup in the case of her condition. When the Mind Flayer stop chasing the others in the car, it turned around to go after Eleven and attempted to have her killed until Lucas gathered all the explosives for him and the group to fire at the monster managing to weaken it along with saving her.

Relationships

Familial

Mr. Sinclair

Due to him serving in the Vietnam War, Lucas learned a few from his father about how to handle the military gears and often brought them with him to defend against any peril. Lucas also secretly asked his father on how to apologize to a girl, thus showing that Lucas has enough trust in his father whenever he needs help.

Mrs. Sinclair

Lucas and his mother were shown to be very close, taking photos of him on the occasion of Halloween and the Snow Ball while also warning his sister not to make unpleasant remarks about him.

Erica Sinclair

Lucas's sister Erica was a source of irritation to him as she constantly taunted his every actions and annoyed him. In 1985, Lucas was shocked to see Erica at Starcourt Mall when coming to Dustin's rescue and that she helped Dustin discover a secret Russian base, including the fact that Erica knows everything about the Upside Down and its monsters. Though Erica still annoyed Lucas, the two worked together in defeating the Mind Flayer and closing the Gate. Three months later, Lucas decided to give all the Party's D&D set to Erica which she accepted; hinting that the two will form a better relationship.

Non-Familial

Mike Wheeler

Lucas and Mike lived next door to each other for their entire childhoods, quickly becoming best friends. However, this friendship was tested following the disappearance of Will and the arrival of Eleven. Mike was sympathetic towards Eleven and believed she could help find Will, while Lucas suspected that she was manipulating them in order to gain food and a bed. Mike and Lucas began to occasionally argue about Will and Eleven due to their differing opinions. This even broke out into a fully fledged fight, though Eleven brought the scuffle to an abrupt end. Mike and Lucas were on bad terms for a while, refusing to apologize to one another. Dustin suspected that Lucas was jealous that Mike's attention was primarily going towards Eleven. However, after Lucas realized that Eleven was only trying to protect them, he apologized and made up with both her and Mike.

In 1984, when playing at the Palace Arcade and trying to figure out the identity of "MADMAX," Lucas tried to urge Mike to give Keith a date with Nancy, which Mike refused. When Mike found out that Lucas, along with Dustin, had invited Max Mayfield (who was "MADMAX") into the Party without informing him, Mike was upset. However, he showed no hostility towards Lucas for it. When Mike worried for Eleven (after she revealed herself to alive) as she went with Hopper to close the Gate, Lucas tried his best to reassure him. When Billy Hargrove attacked Lucas, Mike was greatly concerned for him and once he was rescued by Steve, Mike embraced Lucas. After Max sedates Billy, Mike and Lucas, along with the rest of their friends, work together in burning the tunnels to distract the Demodogs.

In 1985, Mike and Lucas still remained close as both them now had girlfriends. However, after Jim Hopper complicated Mike's relationship with Eleven, Lucas gave Mike advice and sought to help him fix his relationship with Eleven. After Eleven broke up with Mike, Lucas did his best to comfort Mike. After discovering the Mind Flayer had returned and possessed Billy, Lucas wanted to burn the Mind Flayer out of Billy, but was told by Mike that they also needed to stop the Mind Flayer other than Billy. When Mike blurted out his love for Eleven, Lucas smiled at his friend's declaration of love. Both Lucas and Mike continued to work together in battling the Mind Flayer before the Gate was closed once again.

Dustin Henderson

Lucas and Dustin generally got on well; they were sometimes unified in their doubt or disbelief when confronted with strange events and possibilities. Dustin's antics would sometimes annoy Lucas. When both Lucas and Dustin developed crushes on Max Mayfield, they started competing for her affections. They both decided to invite Max into their Party, though Lucas, at first, knew that Mike was not going to like it. Their friendship started to grow colder when Dustin learned that Lucas told Max the events in 1983, despite agreeing to not tell her. When Lucas discovered that Dustin lied to him and the group about Dart and kept him, Lucas was angry with Dustin as the two got into a heated argument. However, they eventually made up and remained friends. When Lucas won Max's affections, Dustin showed no hostility towards Lucas.

In 1985, Lucas welcomed Dustin back from Camp Know Where, only to be sprayed by hairspray in the eyes by accident. When Lucas found out Dustin had a girlfriend, he was shocked, but did not believe in her existence. After coming to Dustin's rescue at Starcourt Mall, Lucas reconciled with Dustin as they and the rest of their friends shared a group hug. Later, Dustin was able to confirm his girlfriend's existence to Lucas during the final battle, as Lucas awkwardly listened to Dustin and his girlfriend Suzie singing Neverending Story. However, three months later, Lucas, along with Max, would make fun of Dustin by singing the song much to Dustin's annoyance.

Will Byers

As with Mike, Will had met and become friends with Lucas from an early age. Like Dustin and Mike, Lucas was determined to find Will, but Lucas became tired of both Mike and Dustin's approaches to doing so. He saw Eleven's presence as a distraction from finding Will, and he did not accept Dustin's plea for them all to work together. He was devastated when he thought that Will was dead, but became determined to find him after Eleven revealed he was still alive. For a while, Lucas instead attempted to seek out Will on his own until he realize the dangers of the Upside Down and the corruptness of the Hawkins Lab agents. After Will had been rescued, Lucas, along with Mike and Dustin greeted Will and told him of what he missed while he was gone.

In 1984, after Will's rescue from the Upside Down, Lucas was always concerned for Will's well-being, which constantly annoyed him. When Will told Lucas of having visions in the Upside Down, Lucas was upset that Will did not tell him or Dustin earlier, but only told Mike. After Will was possessed by the Mind Flayer, he was saved when Lucas and the rest of their friends burned the underground tunnel system. A month later, Lucas and Will attended the Snow Ball and made fun of Dustin's hairstyle.

A year later, in 1985, Will was upset that Lucas wanted to spend time with his girlfriend, Max. He tried to get Lucas and Mike to play a D&D campaign after the two started having relationship problems. But when the two showed they were still interested in reaching out to their girlfriends, instead of playing D&D, Will finally snapped and decided to leave, brushing Lucas off when he attempted to stop him. Lucas and Mike later went to Will's house and tried to apologize to him, only to find him outside Castle Byers, revealing the Mind Flayer's return. Lucas later tried to apologize again the next day as they prepared to test to see if Max's stepbrother, Billy Hargrove, was possessed by the Mind Flayer. However, Will brushed off Lucas's attempts, saying they should be more focused on Billy and the Mind Flayer. However, Lucas managed to reconcile with Will and the two exchanged smiles after hearing Mike confess his love for Eleven. Later, the two worked together in caring for an injured Eleven and battling the Mind Flayer with fireworks. After the Mind Flayer's defeat, three months later, Lucas says goodbye to Will before moving out of Hawkins.

Eleven

Lucas was initially suspicious of Eleven, dismissing her as a "psycho". Although Dustin and Mike made efforts to become friendlier, Lucas kept some distance from her, viewing her as a distraction from the search for Will. Eleven, lacking social skills and confidence, was unable to convince him that she was truly on their side. When Eleven was discovered to be manipulating the boys while they searched for the Gate, Lucas grew angry, accusing her of being traitorous. After Eleven ran away, Lucas had little interest in finding her. However, after Lucas realized that she was justified to keep the boys away from the dangerous forces at Hawkins Lab, his opinion of her changed. Following the kids' reunion, Eleven and Lucas apologized to one another, and remained friendly. A year after her apparent death, Lucas revealed that they reminisced about her when she was later found to be alive and reunited with them.

In 1985, Lucas and Eleven were shown to still be good friends with each other. The two would work together, along with their friends, in trying to stop the Mind Flayer who had returned to Hawkins. When Eleven was choked by Billy, Lucas was shocked and worried for her, showing he does care for her. After Lucas found out that Eleven and Max spied on him and Mike, Lucas was upset, but quickly forgave Eleven. During the fight at Hopper's Cabin, when the Mind Flayer grabbed Eleven by her leg, Lucas managed to save her by chopping off the Mind Flayer's tentacle with an axe. After retreating to Bradley's Big Buy, while taking care of Eleven, Lucas decided to steal some fireworks to help Eleven fight against the Mind Flayer's proxy. Lucas's decision proves to be good when he again manages to save Eleven by throwing the exploding fireworks at the Mind Flayer. After the Mind Flayer's defeat, three months later, Lucas said goodbye to Eleven as she left Hawkins with the Byers family.

Scott Clarke

Lucas and his friends had a great relationship with their school science teacher, Mr. Clarke. He was more than willing to help the boys further their interest in science, even purchasing a ham radio for them.

Max Mayfield

When Lucas and his friends, along with his entire class, was introduced to Max Mayfield by Mr. Clarke, Lucas and his friends grew curious of her and her name as someone named "MADMAX" had beaten Dustin's high score on Dig Dug at the Palace Arcade. As Lucas and his friends watched her, Max had noticed them and left them a note saying "Stop Spying On Me! Creeps!" Later, Lucas and Dustin find Max being dropped off at the arcade and playing Dig Dug and realize that she is "MADMAX." As a result, Lucas, along with Dustin, becomes infatuated with Max. Lucas and Dustin invite Max to come trick-or-treating with them without consulting Mike, but when it seems like Max doesn't accept their invitation, Lucas looks disappointed. However, when Max appears and joins in on trick-or-treating at Loch Nora, Lucas looked overjoyed. Despite agreeing with his friends to not tell Max about the events and the true circumstances of Will's disappearance in 1983, Lucas seemed bothered when they did not include her as they discussed the possibility of D'Artagnan being related to the The Upside Down.

After D'Artagnan escaped and Max confronted Mike about his behavior towards her, Lucas offered Max to help them for the creature, but she refused as she angrily told him how she was tired of being excluded from the party. Lucas tried to explain they didn't mean it and that there were secrets they couldn't tell her, but Max stormed off to meet her stepbrother.

After secretly getting some advice from his father on how to apologize to a girl, Lucas decided to meet Max at the arcade and tell her all of last year's events, including the Demogorgon and Eleven. However, after Lucas told her, Max did not believe him and even when he stopped her from speaking about it out loud, she still didn't believe him, asking for proof which Lucas sadly says that he can't. Before leaving the arcade with her stepbrother, Max takes Lucas's hand and tells him not to follow as he asks if she does believe him and watches her go.

Later, Lucas goes to pick up Max at her house to show her that what he told her was real after hearing from Dustin about D'Artagnan being an adolescent Demogorgon. As they waited in the junkyard, Max explained how's she's affected by her parent's divorce, her mother's remarriage, and her stepbrother's abuse as she apologizes to Lucas for her behavior. Lucas cheers her up by saying how he admires her, doesn't compare to Billy, and how he enjoys talking to her, which Max responds she enjoys talking to him as well. After seeing a Demogorgon in the fifth stage of its life cycle up close, Lucas and Max hold hands before letting go and Max apologizes to Lucas for not believing him.

Later, when Billy finds Max at the Byers house, he attacks Lucas as Max watches in horror. As Billy beats up Steve, Max goes up to stand up to her brother as Lucas watches with worry, but he becomes shocked as she threatens and orders him to leave her and her friends alone. As they go to the pumpkin patch to burn the tunnels, Lucas helps Max on how to get there and they aid each other as they, along with their friends, burn the tunnels. A month later, on December 15, Lucas, Max, and their friends attend the Snow Ball. Lucas asks Max to dance with him which she accepts. As they dance, Lucas and Max share a kiss and embrace, thus beginning a romantic relationship with each other.

Despite this, their relationship has been somewhat rocky, with Lucas claiming they have broken up and gotten back together at least five times by the summer of 1985. On June 30, Max, Lucas, Will, Mike, and El surprise Dustin, welcoming home from being a month away at camp. However, they unintentionally scare him into believing there are intruders in his home and Dustin accidentally sprays Lucas in the face with hairspray. While Max helps Lucas clean out his eyes, he comments on a new zit on her forehead, causing her to shove his face back into the sink and get water in his face. While hiking to get into contact with Dustin's girlfriend, Suzie, Max scolds Lucas for drinking all of their water. Later that evening, when Lucas comments that no girl is that perfect after hearing Dustin describing Suzie as "hotter than Phoebe Cates", Max annoyingly asks if that's so. He then nervously states that she is perfect, only for Max to say she's joking and she is "obviously perfect".

When Max and El found Lucas with Mike at Starcourt Mall, Lucas supported Mike in lying to the girls, only for his relationship with Max to become rocky once again where he was silently dumped by her for helping Mike lie. Afterward, Lucas sought to make amends with Max and fix their relationship.

However, she and El settle their differences and work together with Mike, Lucas, and Will to see if Billy has been Flayed. When Billy breaks the window to the sauna room with broken concrete, he lunges at Max, but Lucas uses his slingshot to rescue her and shields her when Billy breaks out of the sauna.

At the hospital, Lucas distracts Max in order for Mike to make amends with El. Lucas aims candy into Max's mouth as a game and two are heard laughing, possibly starting to reconcile. When Lucas found out that Max and El spied on him and Mike, Lucas was angry, but quickly forgave Max.

While scavenging for supplies at Bradley's Big Buy, Max was less than supportive of Lucas' plan to stop the Mind Flayer using fireworks, much to his annoyance.

Three months later, the two appear to be once again back together, teasing Dustin together by singing the theme song for "The Neverending Story". That afternoon, they lean on one another sadly as they watch El and the Byers move out of Hawkins.

Billy Hargrove

Max's stepbrother, Billy Hargrove, developed a hatred for Lucas for being near his stepsister. Billy ordered Max to stay away from Lucas and Lucas would learn of Billy's abuse towards Max. When confronted by Billy at the Byers House, Billy attacked Lucas for being with Max, but Lucas fought back by kicking him in the groin. It angered Billy, but he was stopped from attacking Lucas even more by Steve Harrington. Lucas was even surprised when Max sedated Billy and threatened him to leave her and her friends alone; Lucas included.

A year later, in 1985, Lucas helped his friends confirm whether Billy was possessed by the Mind Flayer by trapping him in a sauna. When Billy tried to attack Max, Lucas saved her by hitting a rock at him with his sling shot. After Billy was confirmed to be possessed, Lucas wanted to find him and burn the Mind Flayer out of Billy, but was reprimanded by Mike who said they'd also need to stop the Mind Flayer. While trying to escape Starcourt Mall, Lucas and his friends were nearly run over by a possessed Billy until Steve and Robin Buckley managed to save them. Then, as Lucas fought the Mind Flayer with fireworks, Billy felt the Mind Flayer's pain. It is unknown how Lucas felt when Billy sacrificed himself to protect him, Eleven, Max, and the rest of his friends from the Mind Flayer.

Appearances

Comics

Template:The Other Side Appearances ^{*Can be seen in flashbacks}

Memorable Quotes

Lucas:

• "If I get another 3 Musketeers, I'm gonna kill myself."
• "I was looking for study hall. Bye!"
• "Eat shit!"
• "Goodnight ladies!"
• "If there is something out there, I'm gonna shoot it in the eyes... and blind it."
• "He's in deep shit right about now."
• "I'm spending romantic time with my girlfriend."

Lucas to Will:

• "Don't be a pussy! Fireball him!"

Lucas to Mike:

• "I'm done. Over."

Lucas to Dustin:

• "Would you shut up about Lando?!"
• "While you were scrounging around like a homeless bum, I mowed Old Man Humphrey's lawn."

Lucas to Eleven:

• "A spit swear means you never break your word. It's a bond."
• "Everything I said about you being a traitor and stuff, I was wrong. I'm sorry."

Lucas to Mike, Dustin & Eleven:

• "Do you hear me?! The bad men are coming!"
• "He's insane."

Lucas to Erica:

• "Get. Out. Of my room!"
• "Shut up."

Lucas to Max:

• "It's not a joke. It's public knowledge."
• "'You're cool, and different, and you're super smart."
• "Totally tubular."

Trivia

• According to the Montauk pilot script, Lucas's original surname was Conley. His parents were described to be wealthy though they didn’t have a good marriage. However, this relationship has been partly shifted to Mike’s parents.
• During the first season, Lucas's Dungeons & Dragons character was a Knight. In the second season, his character was changed to a Ranger.
• Lucas was also the only main character to be dark-skinned until his sister joined the main cast in Season 3.
• Lucas is the first member of the Party and character to have his full name revealed, as mentioned by his sister in E Pluribus Unum.
• Lucas prefers New Coke than the original Coke.
• In the Hawkins Middle School Yearbook, he was shown to be voted as the "Biggest Flirt". It is stated that his career goal is a "police detective by day, masked crime-fighter by night". His favorite subject is History. His hobbies are riding bikes, playing video games, and shooting his wrist rocket. When he is not studying he is mowing lawns and making money, "like a real man." The extracurricular activities he did were the AV Club and the Science Fair.
• Lucas' karate shirt is inspired of to the 1984 martial arts drama film "The Karate Kid".