‘We did discuss’: Stranger Things creators reveal they almost gave Vecna a shocking redemption arc, but decided he’d gone too far

If you thought Vecna might switch sides during his final scene with Will Byers in the Stranger Things finale, you weren’t wrong to think that. The Duffer Brothers actually considered giving the villain a last-minute heroic moment before deciding he had gone too far to be saved.

According to GamesRadar, the show’s creators took inspiration from The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King when planning how to end the series. They also thought about copying a famous moment from Return of the Jedi. In a chat with Netflix Tudum, Ross Duffer explained why they couldn’t let Henry Creel turn good.

“We did discuss with the writers’ room if he could have a Billy [Dacre Montgomery] moment where he turns against the Mind Flayer [in a] Darth Vader-type situation,” the co-creator admitted. “But the more we talked about it with the writers and with Jamie, 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.’”

The villain had crossed too many lines to deserve forgiveness

You can see hints of a possible change of heart in Vecna’s scene with Will. The moment goes on long enough to make viewers wonder if he might actually switch sides. Like many plot points in the final season, the Duffers are fine with letting fans decide for themselves whether Henry really thought about changing.

Ross explained that even though seeing his old memories shook Henry up, he had gone too far to turn against the Mind Flayer. The creators wanted viewers to decide if young Henry chose this evil path himself or if the Mind Flayer controlled him from the start. But in the end, it doesn’t really matter because Henry picks the Mind Flayer’s side anyway.

No matter how you feel about other choices in the finale, killing off Henry was the right decision. The villain had committed too many terrible acts to deserve a second chance. Fans have been vocal about wanting more content, with hundreds of thousands demanding unreleased footage from the series.

Plus, if he hadn’t died, Joyce would have brought that ax for nothing. The Duffers made the tough but correct call to give Vecna the ending he earned through his actions. While some Netflix productions have moved viewers to tears with emotional storytelling, Stranger Things chose a darker path for its main villain.