Why Vecna Looks Different in 'Stranger Things' Season 5, Explained

One of the biggest Internet talking points after Stranger Things Season 5, Volume 1 debuted last month was Vecna’s makeover.

Many noticed that the evil character looked different – specifically, with a smaller waistline. The character, played by Jamie Campbell Bower, is noticeably trimmer in season five and now we’re getting an explanation why.

Keep reading to find out more…

Barrie Gower, the makeup effects department head for the series, explained to People that they “relied more heavily on CGI” this season, “which is why the character looks different.”

Barrie explained, “Matt and Ross [Duffer] were very keen to have this character heavily driven by Jamie‘s performance rather than going down a completely CGI or digital route. But the actual scale of the character now was going to be larger than life.”

“Also, he’d evolved to the point where his body was just made up of these mutated vines and things, rather than being 100% human form. He wanted the ability to be able to see through his body as well, through these cavernous masses and holes in his body, in his arms and what have you, which, again, would be impossible to achieve practically,” Barrie added.

Vecna in Season 4

“Looking at the build and the expense and the time, it seemed like a more straightforward approach to, from the shoulders down, digitally recreate Jamie‘s performance and the body, and we still had a practical head. We had a practical right arm as well, and it would 100% still be Jamie in that makeup,” Barrie continued.

Watch the trailer for the next batch of episodes, dropping next week!