This article contains spoilers for Stranger Things Season 4 Vol. 1The fourth season of Stranger Things, which debuted in late May, features one of the most sinister villains in the series yet: an evil entity named Vecna, who resides in the Upside Down and preys on his victim's biggest fears before violently tearing them limb by limb. The show also delves further into the origins of the Upside Down and Eleven's childhood at the Hawkins Laboratory through a series of flashbacks.
During those flashbacks, viewers are introduced to a friendly orderly who takes Eleven under his wing, helping her tap into her powers and fight back against bullies at the facility. However, the audience learns that Vecna and the orderly are the same people as the season progresses. Before his gruesome transformation, Vecna was Henry, the human son of Victor Creel and Dr. Brenner's first patient. Both characters on Stranger Things are played by Jamie Campbell Bower, who went through an intense process in preparation for the role.
In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor detailed how he tapped into the psyche of the antagonists, which involved "a lot of heavy meditation" and even staring at spiders for hours. “I would take four days before filming anything [to get into character], and those first two days are about clearing everything out. There’s a lot of life happening to us all the time”, he told the outlet. “So those first two days are really about clearing the space so that I’m open. A lot of people call this channeling. But for me, it requires more attention.”
Bower continued, explaining that he would set his intentions and “do enough character research” before visualizing and “digging that up”. He also revealed that he would punch things in his house, write and draw in a book (much like the younger version of Henry), and repeat “the same thing over and over again” to channel the anger that both Vecna and Henry/One feel towards others.
Method acting has received its fair share of criticism for its demanding nature and detrimental effects. Earlier this year, Guardians of the Galaxy 3 star Will Poulter revealed that the technique is often used as “an excuse for inappropriate behavior." Fortunately, Bower was able to interact with the cast and crew and snap out of character quite easily despite going “pretty far” with his prepping.
Season 4 of was divided into two volumes, with the second debuting on July 1st. Although the season’s supersized episode runtime was criticized (the season finale clocks 2 hours and 30 minutes), Stranger Things continues to be one of the most successful series of the last few years —and it’s easy to see why. The first part of season 4 is exciting, scary, and, most importantly, fun.
Stranger Things season 4 is streaming on Netflix.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter