The Newest ‘Stranger Things’ Monster Vecna Kind of Has a Complicated Past…
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*SPOILERS FOR SEASON 4 OF STRANGER THINGS BELOW!*
Over the past few seasons of Stranger Things, our favorite group of friends from Hawkins has faced many monsters from the Upside Down. Demogorgons? Check. Mind Flayers? Check again. But now there’s a new creature coming to wreak havoc on our sweet little Indiana town, and you won’t believe the Hawkins history this new guy Vecna brings to the table. As with everything in Stranger Things, things are not what they seem, and this might be the most surprising reveal in the history of the series. (So make sure you finish watching Stranger Things 4 before continuing on, and don’t say we didn’t warn you!)
Here’s everything you need to know about who Vecna is in Stranger Things 4.
Who is Vecna according to the group? What are their theories?
Okay, seriously. Last chance to run away before we dive deep into some big spoilers!
At first glance, Vecna looks like a brand-new monster that has come to turn things upside down (no pun intended) in Hawkins. After mysterious murders start occurring around town, many locals believe they have something to do with the Hellfire Club and satanic rituals (it was the ’80s). But it actually all led back to Vecna and the Upside Down.
Eventually, the crew figures out through Max’s experiences that Vecna targets those with extreme guilt, typically over the loss of someone, and uses a mind link to connect with them. But at a certain point, the mind link causes them to head mentally to the Upside Down, where Vecna kills them, leaving their bodies behind in the real Hawkins while becoming more powerful in the other world.
Since all the monsters in the Upside Down are connected, Dustin figures out that Vecna is not killing people just for fun but rather for the purpose of opening more gates between Hawkins and the alternate world to ultimately help the Mind Flayer. “If the Demogorgon was just its [the Mind Flayer’s] foot soldier, Vecna is his five-star general with the power to open gates,” he points out.
Who is Vecna really?
We find out in episode 7 that just like how everything in the Upside Down is connected, Vecna is also deeply connected to Hawkins and Eleven.
Nancy (who is still in the Upside Down with Steve) ends up under Vecna’s control, and she starts seeing visions about Barb’s death. However, unlike everyone else who ends up seeing only broken parts of Creel House, Nancy—likely due to all the research she’s done—is able to see all the pieces together and look back into Vecna’s memories.
It’s revealed that Vecna is actually Victor Creel’s son, Henry. After realizing he has powers while feeling alone in his own home, Henry decides to attack his own family and kill them to test his power. Victor is framed for the murders at Creel House, while his son is taken away.
At Hawkins National Laboratory, Doctor Brenner experiments on Henry to try to ID the source of his powers. Eventually, Henry becomes powerful and Brenner attempts to duplicate these powers into others. Brenner tattoos the number 001 on Henry’s arm, calling him “One” and making him the first of the many kids experimented on…including Eleven. After a while, Brenner implants a chip in One to help curb his growing powers for good and forces him to work in the lab training other children who are growing their powers.
Realizing that Eleven is different and more powerful than everyone else, One decides to reveal more of the truth to her in an effort to help them escape. Eleven uses her powers to remove the implant, but before they can leave the lab, they are surrounded. In that moment, One finally shows his true powers and also tells Eleven to stay in a room so he can check if things are clear, saying he’ll soon come back for her.
After waiting a long time, Eleven steps out and heads to the Rainbow Room to see that One killed everyone in retaliation. He asks her to join him in trying to take over and “bring balance to the world,” but she refuses and they go after each other. Much to One’s surprise, Eleven ends up being more powerful than even he is and she sends him to the Upside Down, creating a portal in the process and also turning One into Vecna. Oof, that was a doozy. Anyway, now moving along to…
What are Vecna’s motives?
This is still a bit of a mystery. Whether Dustin’s theory is correct about Vecna working with the Mind Flayer still hasn’t been confirmed, but Vecna/One definitely has it out for the world that shunned him. Either way, he’s definitely not welcome at Hawkins, and the team is trying to do everything to take him down.
What are Vecna’s weaknesses?
As tested on Max and revealed by Victor, one way to break out of Vecna’s hold is to have the person listen to a song that is important to them. For Max, it’s “Running Up That Hill (a Deal With God),” by Kate Bush. While that’s good intel to have, the team will have to figure out a different plan if they want to get rid of Vecna more permanently.
What can we expect from Vecna in Stranger Things season 4 part 2?
Now that Eleven remembers who One/Vecna is, there’s no doubt she’ll try to use her powers to stop him again (if she has them back, that is…). Meanwhile, Nancy still seems to be under Vecna’s control, which means the Hawkins group will have to work fast to save her and also make sure the rest of the town is safe in time for El to arrive. Luckily for us, part 2 drops on July 1!
Who plays Vecna/Henry/001?
Jamie Campbell Bower is playing the Stranger Things 4 big, bad villain. The actor, who has previously appeared in the Twilight series and The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, landed the coveted role and has since revealed that it would take him about seven hours in a makeup chair to turn into Vecna. He also got really into character by spending some time alone and figuring out how to connect with Henry/One’s anger.
“I wouldn’t speak to anybody outside of the Stranger Things world for at least four days before filming anything. I would find myself doing some pretty wild stuff. If anyone saw me walking around the streets of Atlanta at 2 in the morning talking to myself, they would understand. I was just bringing up a lot of anger, particularly for Vecna,” he told Variety.
Surely all of Vecna’s Jamie’s rituals are already paying off given all the growing hype around part 2 of the show’s latest season, which literally comes out this week!
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