Vecna's 'Stranger Things' Villain Arc Is Actually Subjective, Duffer Brothers Explain
- - Vecna's 'Stranger Things' Villain Arc Is Actually Subjective, Duffer Brothers Explain
Liz DeclanJanuary 2, 2026 at 7:09 PM
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One of the biggest questions heading into the Stranger Things finale was whether Henry Creel/Vecna could really be redeemed, especially because the canon Stranger Thingsplay The First Shadowimplied there was more to his story. Although the finale seemed to provide an answer, recent comments from show creators the Duffer Brothers have suggested this arc might be more subjective than it seems.
SPOILER—This post includes spoilers from the Stranger Thingsfinale.
Seasons 4 and 5 of Stranger Things consistently positioned Vecna as the villain, yet there were always complexities to his story. There was little getting around the fact that he'd committed heinous acts (he wiped out all the Hawkins Lab kids, after all), but questions arose early on about the extent to which he was in control.
Between the final two seasons, The First Shadow was released and only redoubled the sense that Henry was actually a victim of the Mind Flayer, just as Will Byers had once been, as it depicts Henry's exposure to the Mind Flayer and the disastrous effects being "flayed" had on his life. With this background, viewers went into Season 5 expecting answers on whether Henry was a victim or a villain (or something in between).
On the surface, it seemed like Season 5 gave a clear answer. In a devastating scene in which Will tries to get through to Henry and Henry cries and tells Will to leave him alone, Henry asserts that he was never controlled by the Mind Flayer and insists that he could have resisted but instead chose to join the Mind Flayer and commit to evil.
As much as that scene seemed cut and dry, Matt and Ross Duffer recently provided more insight into Henry's assertions during this scene and where they might really be stemming from.
Speaking with Tudum, Ross Duffer explained, "We did discuss with the writers’ room if he could have a Billy moment where he turns against the Mind Flayer [in a] Darth Vader-type situation. But the more we talked about it with the writers and with Jamie [Campbell Bower], he’s gone so far at this point to get here, he has to justify everything he’s done. And the only way to justify that is to go, 'I chose this, and I believe in this still.'"
There are a few interesting aspects of this explanation, not the least of which is the fact that the Duffers and the writers evidently did consider a Darth Vader-style redemption arc, in which Henry would have turned against the Mind Flayer and fought alongside the Stranger Things heroes in the end (presumably as his final act, like Darth Vader's turn against Emperor Palpatine).
Even with the Duffers opting to toss out this idea, though, Ross Duffer's words suggest that Henry may only have insisted he chose to join the Mind Flayer and was never controlled because he needed a justification for all the evil he had done up to that point.
This leaves the door open for an interpretation in which there was actually some good left in Henry at that point, but he needed the justification—and that door was very intentional.
In the same Tudum interview, Ross Duffer elaborated, "Even though he is shaken by seeing this memory, he’s too far gone at this point to turn against the Mind Flayer. But we wanted to leave it up to the audience in terms of whether young Henry did choose this or whether it was simply the Mind Flayer controlling him from beginning to end."
Although Duffer adds that, ultimately, Henry still chose the Mind Flayer in the end, these comments do confirm that it's really up to the viewer whether they want to believe that Henry was telling the truth and he fully chose this path or they want to interpret this scene as Henry still being controlled at that moment.
It is worth noting, however, that some Stranger Things cast members have made comments that seemingly support the idea that Henry should be seen, at least in part, as a victim.
This story was originally published by Parade on Jan 3, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
