Metallica Fans Enraged at Singer's 'Stranger Things' Halloween Costume

Metallica singer James Hetfield got meta this Halloween in a move that seemed to upset many of his own fans.

The thrash lord had dressed up as Edward "Eddie" Munson from Netflix's Stranger Things. Some young viewers recently discovered the metal veterans thanks to the popular show, during which Munson played the group's 1986 banger "Master of Puppets" during a crucial scene.

But just as quickly as the band's newfound fans fell in love, they promptly "canceled" the group after learning of its past brushes with controversy.

Regardless, Hetfield paid homage to the Netflix show in a new post on the band's Instagram account. In the photo, the singer and rhythm guitarist wears a jean jacket, black pants and long dark wig while holding up devil horns and sticking out his tongue. He also sported a white shirt with a red devil on it, similar to what Munson, played by actor Joseph Quinn, donned in Season 4 of the show.

Haters flocked to Metallica's Instagram, with some hurling snark-infused takes like "Stop" and "F*** sake."

Another upset fan replied by writing, "love you Metallica, but no..," and an Instagram user called @hetfieldxnmacca commented in all capital letters: "NOT THIS."

Other fans were more charitable regarding Hetfield's Halloween 'fit.

One Instagram user replied to the band's photo: "I love this!!! James you are so adorable!!! Happy Halloween!!!" adding several Halloween-related emojis.

Another commenter wrote, "Gate keeping Metallica fans crying rn."

Someone else noted the proportion of supportive and diss-related replies, writing: "Comments: 49% 'No' 'why' 'stop' 49% 'God' 'Yeah James' 2% 'Happy Halloween' '[laughing emoji].'"

A photo of the costume also made its way to Twitter, where Metallica fans were equally divided. Many noted how the Hetfield-Quinn bromance had come "full circle," while one upset social media user wrote "omw to off myself" in response.

A representative for Metallica declined Newsweek's request for comment.

Over the summer, Metallica went viral on TikTok after the band duetted with the "Master of Puppets" scene, and the video racked up millions of views.

Quinn joined the thrashers for a jam session backstage at Lollapalooza, where the group projected Stranger Things clips during their rendition of "Master of Puppets." The heavy single also recently graced the Billboard Hot 100 chart—for the first time ever.

Metallica lauded the series as the latest season aired on Netflix, saying: "It's an incredible honor to be such a big part of Eddie's journey and to once again be keeping company with all of the other amazing artists featured in the show."

Newsweek reached out to representatives for Quinn for comment.