‘Stranger Things’ star David Harbour celebrated his Emmy nomination with a waffle, plans to spend time with his puppy

David Harbour, who plays a tough yet melancholic top cop in Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” scored his second Emmy nomination Thursday for supporting actor in a drama series.

When his girlfriend brought the news of his nomination, Harbour was in the middle of an unglamorous task — teaching his puppy to poop on command.

“It’s so special and so gratifying,” Harbour said. “The television being made in this country right now is so wonderful, to be acknowledged by those people…is just a dream come true.”

Speaking of television...what are you watching right now?

I just binged the crap out of [Amazon’s] “Catastrophe.” It’s a very different show than “Stranger Things” — it’s just so fun and beautiful. I actually went back and watched all of “True Detective’s” season one again, which I think is a true masterpiece.

Why do you think “Stranger Things” and your role on the show resonates so much?

I’ll put “Stranger Things” up there with the best of it. I think it’s such a profound show — it’s very subtle in the way that it tells its story, but it’s very effective. Every time I watch it, I feel something, which is very rare for me. I think that’s what “Stranger Things” does, it opens you up — it has a real beating heart to it.

In terms of my character — I know what I put into it, I put everything I have into him. The fact that it is registering with people is wonderful. It’s a great character as written, and I just throw in all of my messes that I’ve acquired over the years. I’m able to just pour it out on screen. Sometimes that mess is tragic and crazy...or me just having love handles and letting them hang out.

How do you plan to celebrate today?

I already celebrated. My girlfriend and I left the puppy and we went out for a waffle at this breakfast joint…that’s the kind of exciting Hollywood life I lead. Now it’s going to be a lot of hanging out with the puppy. To be honest, I’m not a big celebrator. I’m a bit of a strange human being — I love to work, I love art, I love self-expression.

My celebration will be going back to work and going back to shooting on “Stranger Things” in a couple days.

makeda.easter@latimes.com

@makedaeaster