Summary
- Season 5 of Stranger Things focuses on Will Byers’ mysterious survival in the Upside Down.
- Flashbacks from season 1 might reveal details of Will’s disappearance and time on the Upside Down.
- Will likely confront Vecna in the Upside Down, playing a significant role in defeating the ultimate villain.
Stranger Things season 5 is fast approaching, and yet one of the biggest mysteries in the show has never been addressed up until this point. The vanishing of Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) was the catalyst of Stranger Things in the show’s first season. Still, the details of his disappearance have never been discussed. In the opening of season 1, Will was chased down by a creature that would later be named by the Party as a Demogorgon. However, it’s fascinating that Will disappeared for a week but didn’t die.
On the other hand, when the best friend of Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer), Barbara “Barb” Holland (Shannon Purser), was taken to the Upside Down, she died on the same night. As Stranger Things comes to a close, there are questions rooted in these incidents that the Duffers have yet to explain. First, how did a 12-year-old boy survive the gruesome Upside Down? Second, why did Will go missing in the first place? Fortunately, the Duffer Brothers have laid out hints that could be linked to the answers the fans are searching for.
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Confirmed Flashbacks From Stranger Things Season 1
In an Instagram post from struniverse, the Duffers revealed that Stranger Things season 5 will feature flashbacks shot during the first season. This could potentially mean that the audience will see the perspectives of different characters in connection to Will’s disappearance. And, of course, the fans will also finally have a glimpse of how things went down during the week that Will was missing. What was it like for him in the Upside Down, hiding from the Demogorgon? How was he captured in the end, and what allowed him to survive?
An official set photo also shows an actor playing a young Will Byers wearing his clothes from season 1. Noah is also shown right in front of the actor, portraying Will in what seems to be a jump into the past. Just like how they used CGI to make the actress playing a young Eleven (Martie Blair) in season 4 look like Millie Bobby Brown, the special effects team will likely replicate the de-aging technology on young Will Byers to film scenes that weren’t shot years ago. These flashbacks and new CGI effects imply that the Duffers will go into detail about how things went down from Will’s side of the story back in 1983.
Will Can Still Sense Vecna
In the finale of Stranger Things season 1, the audience sees Will coughing out a creature that would later become a Demogorgon called “D’Artagnan,” or “Dart.” Immediately, his surroundings change, showing he is still tethered to the Upside Down despite being on the Rightside Up. This connection would eventually become the main plot of season 2.
Although what Will sensed was considered the source itself, later dubbed as the Mindflayer, it was revealed that Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) was the one pulling the strings all along. In season 4, episode 7, Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) has an incredible realization, deducing that Vecna is a key player of the Mindflayer:
So, if the Demogorgon was just his foot soldier, Vecna’s his five-star general. A five-star general with the power to open gates.
Throughout the series, Will touches his neck to indicate the Mindflayer’s or Vecna’s presence. Even though Will’s plot in Stranger Things season 4 wasn’t directly related to Vecna, he could sense him as soon as he returned to the decimated town of Hawkins. Mike remarks that Vecna, otherwise known as 001, has been defeated, but Will corrects him and says he is hurt but still alive.
Will Byers Parallels Henry Creel
Henry Creel (Raphael Luce), Vecna’s old identity, showed many similarities to Will Byers. In season 1, episode 1, Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) emphasized that Will is “a sensitive kid.” Later on, in season 4, episode 4, Victor Creel (Robert Englund) uses similar words to describe his son, particularly the traits he exhibited after they moved into their new home.
But Henry, my… My boy, he was a sensitive child… And I could see he felt something was wrong.
Aside from being sensitive and an artist, Henry sensed the supernatural, just like Will. Season 4 shows how Henry’s abilities sparked the interest of Dr. Martin Brenner (Matthew Modine), who would later make him 001. With the existing parallels between Will and Henry, it’s not too farfetched to deduce that Will Byers might have powers similar to the kids in the lab. After all, it’s odd for the government to cover up his disappearance and go as far as to fake his death.
Will Is Likely Going to Meet Vecna (Again) in the Upside Down
Will’s involvement in Stranger Things season 5 seems to be far greater than what most people expect. He could even potentially be the main character of the final season. Although the gates have been opened, causing the town of Hawkins to mirror the Upside Down, the battle remains to be fought on the other side. And since Eleven couldn’t fight Vecna on her own, she will need Will and his abilities to help her defeat the ultimate villain.
There’s a possibility that Will could have forgotten about specific encounters he had with Vecna during the week he disappeared. However, their inevitable reunion in the Upside Down could be the best time to show what connects these two central figures in the Stranger Things universe. As fans have seen, Vecna plays with people’s dark secrets and traumas. Will has suffered through so much, and potentially possesses powers that Vecna needs. Because of this, Will could likely become Vecna’s primary target, allowing him to fulfill his catastrophic plans for Hawkins.
The unveiling of Will’s past and connection to the Upside Down will be crucial to gaining leverage over Vecna. However, tapping into the potential of his abilities won’t be the easiest for Will, since it would entail remembering traumatizing events that he has likely forgotten. And with the new age rating of Stranger Things season 5, the audience could be witnessing gruesome flashbacks and fight scenes involving Will. All these events that have yet to unfold in Stranger Things will only make the final battle with Vecna even more vindicating and worth the wait.
