The following contains spoilers for Stranger Things Season 4, Episode 7, "The Massacre at Hawkins Lab," streaming now on Netflix.
Stranger Things' long-awaited fourth season finally premiered on Netflix, and audiences are eager for another trip to the Upside Down. The season is split into two volumes, the second of which won't be released until July. It's been three years since Eleven and her motley crew of misfits last saved the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana from Demogorgons and Mind Flayers, but Season 4 ups the ante with a brand-new villain, Vecna.
The first season of Stranger Things debuted on Netflix in the summer of 2016 and proved to be hugely popular for the streaming service. The sci-fi horror series captured the world by storm, thanks in no small part to the 1980s setting dripping with nostalgia, from the soundtrack to the big hair to the Starcourt Mall. The show continues to receive rave reviews, with each season growing increasingly gorier than the last.
Who Is Vecna in Stranger Things 4?
In typical Stranger Things fashion, Season 4's new villain Vecna gets his name from none other than Dungeons & Dragons. Vecna is the most unique and terrifying monster thus far, as he is the first in the series with a humanlike face and the ability to speak. The showrunners were inspired by horror classic A Nightmare on Elm Street -- Vecna is able to infiltrate the minds of his victims and kill them while they're in a waking nightmare, much in the same vein as Freddy Krueger.
Unlike the villains from past seasons, Vecna has a backstory. Born Henry Creel, son of Victor Creel, he had powerful psychic abilities as a child. He used his abilities to torment and kill his family while framing his father Victor in the process, ultimately ending up in the care of Dr. Brenner as his first test subject, 001. Eleven meets him in the lab as orderly Peter Ballard, his powers kept at bay by a chip. He tricks Eleven into helping him and takes out almost the entire lab before she overpowers him and unwittingly sends him to the Upside Down, where he is trapped for years, transforming into Vecna.
Who Voices Stranger Things' New Villain, Vecna?
English actor Jamie Campbell Bower portrays both Peter Ballard and Vecna. He appears in the credits as "friendly orderly," most likely to conceal his true identity and avoid plot spoilers. Bower is best known for his roles as a member of the Volturi in Twilight and young Grindelwald in Harry Potter. He also starred in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
The latest season of Stranger Things traces the story back to the beginning while taking the horror to new heights, especially with its new villain Vecna. David Harbour, the actor who portrays police chief Jim Hopper, describes Vecna in an interview with Variety: "The Upside Down has been this wild west world where there are creatures running around, there's violence, but we've never seen something as calculatedly psychologically evil as this."
The first three seasons and all episodes in Volume 1 of Stranger Things Season 4 are available to stream on Netflix. The final two episodes in Volume 2 release on July 1, 2022.