Stranger Things season 4 villain is Pennywise, Pinhead and Freddy Krueger rolled into one

The cast and crew behind Stranger Things Season 4 teased the overwhelming threat posed by the latest villain, Vecna, who has been described as “their version of a Pennywise, Pinhead, or Freddy Krueger.” Speaking to IGN, director Shawn Levy did some serious hype work for the latest villain, calling it “unlike anything that’s come before.”

“Season 4 needed a villain like never before. And he had to be more than a creature, more than an evil cloud of particles. It needed to be a humanoid villain with more depth, more dimension, and way more evil. That’s what Vecna ​​is.

While we’ve seen little from Vecna ​​so far, what we’ve seen certainly suggests that grandiose descriptions like “much more evil” will be on point. Following in the footsteps of the Mind Flayer and the Demogorgon, Vecna ​​takes its name from Dungeons & Dragons, with the source character’s backstory hinting at some interesting things about who the character might be. These theories have been further bolstered by the return of star Sadie Sink, who calls Vecna’s vendetta “much more personal.”

“We’ve never seen a villain like this before. It’s interesting how he chooses his next targets and everything. Everything is just much more personal. »

Actress Millie Bobby Brown added more hype, teasing not only the details of the villain, but how he was practically brought to life as well.

“This season, there are no limits. There are things I didn’t even think were possible, like our main monster this season. Just that in itself is pretty crazy. I never thought we’d be able to do this on our show, and the fact that there’s so little CGI and it’s already so scary just shows that there are no limits.

Could Vecna ​​have ties to Eleven and Hawkins Lab?

Theories surrounding Vecna’s true identity are starting to seem more and more possible. Considered one of the greatest villains of Dungeons & Dragons, Vecna ​​was born human and was one of the “untouchable caste of the flan city of Fleeth upon Oerth”. Trained by his mother in the art of magic, Vecna ​​swore revenge after his mother was executed for practicing witchcraft. In the name of revenge, Vecna ​​turned to the dark arts, mastering them more than anyone before.

This tragic story led many to believe that Vecna ​​could be One to Eleven’s number 11, with the character starting out as a human before being experimented on, betrayed, and retreating into the Upside Down. Now that they’re one with the alternate world, whatever Vecna ​​is, they’re clearly rather desperate to punish the town of Hawkins.

Luckily, we don’t have to wait too long to find out the truth, with the first part of stranger things Season 4 is set to premiere on Netflix on May 27, 2022. The second volume will be released five weeks later on July 1, 2022.