Jamie Campbell Bower Officially Debuts As Henry Creel In Stranger Things’ Hit Prequel & Teases How It Influences Vecna’s Season 5 Story

Jamie Campbell Bower has turned Stranger Things‘ world Upside Down this weekend as he reprises his role of Henry Creel off the hit Netflix series.

As a surprise to the audience on December 19, Jamie Campbell Bower made his Broadway debut as Henry Creel at the very end of Stranger Things: The First Shadow. Taking over from the play’s main Henry Creel actor Louis McCartney, who has portrayed the character in both the West End and Broadway iterations, Campbell’s scene occurred during the epilogue.

Janet Mayer/INSTARimages.com

ScreenRant was in attendance at the Stranger Things: The First Shadow show at the Marquis Theatre in New York City when Campbell briefly appeared as Henry, which was met with roaring applause and excitement from the crowd.

Stranger Things: The First Shadow, which originally debuted in December 2023, brings the story back to Hawkins in 1959. The play follows the origins of Henry Creel as his family moves to town, his dark powers grow stronger, he joins a play at school directed by Joyce Maldonado (later Byers), and he meets Dr. Martin Brenner.

Ahead of the play, Bower revealed in an interview with ScreenRant‘s Liam Crowley how his performance in the stage show came about and his admiration for Louis McCartney’s performance as Henry in The First Shadow:

Liam Crowley: How did this performance come together? How was it pitched to you?

Jamie Campbell Bower: I was just asked. It just sort of appeared.

Liam Crowley: How long ago?

Jamie Campbell Bower: About a month ago. Maybe less than that. Maybe two or three weeks ago. It was actually at the premiere of season 5. It was mentioned to me and I saw Louis and Louis was like, ‘Yeah, you’re gonna come and do this?’ And I was like, ‘I guess! This sounds really fun.’

Liam Crowley: Have you seen [Louis McCartney’s] performance?

Jamie Campbell Bower: Oh yeah. I’ve seen it twice. He’s brilliant. He’s amazing. I remember seeing him in previews in London and he was ripped in London and I saw him here in March when they opened on Broadway, and he’s just progressively more stacked.

Additionally, Bower touched on how The First Shadow‘s influence on his portrayal of Vecna/Henry Creel in Stranger Things season 5, noting that he “took” some things from the play when heading into season 5 while also building onto the series’ depiction of Henry on his own:

Liam Crowley: Did the Henry performance in The First Shadow at all influence your perception of Henry going into season 5?

Jamie Campbell Bower: There were definitely things that I took from the play. More to be revealed on that as we progress towards the new year. Did it influence how I felt about Henry? I suppose I always felt so deeply in love with him. I really cared for him when I was playing him. I really cared for his experience when building him, because I spent a long time thinking about who the little boy is inside of the grown up version.

When I went to go see the play, because of the time that it is set in his life, I think I just felt really sorry for him. I felt really, really sorry for him. It was a very emotional experience, watching that show for the first time, for multiple reasons, but one of which definitely being that I was witnessing the boy that I had thought so much about, and that’s a beautiful thing. Yes, things that I took, and yes, things that I built.

Jamie Campbell Bower’s The First Shadow Debut Perfectly Leads Into Stranger Things Season 5 Vol. 2

Bower’s debut in The First Shadow comes just a few days before the highly anticipated release of Stranger Things season 5, volume 2 on Netflix, which entails three episodes dropping on Christmas Day at 8 p.m. ET. In the final season, Bower’s Vecna/Henry Creel adds another alias to his roster, being referred to as “Mr. Whatsit” to the Hawkins kids he had secretly been visiting.

Campbell has now become the second major actor to crossover on both the TV and stage worlds of Stranger Things. He follows Alex Breaux, who portrayed Dr. Brenner in The First Shadow on Broadway before debuting in Stranger Things season 5’s cast as Lt. Robert Akers.

The timing of Jamie Campbell Bower’s stint in The First Shadow also couldn’t be better, as Stranger Things season 5 has now woven in certain storylines, reveals, and twists that come directly from the play’s canon. In volume 1, that included the 1959-set flashback of teen Joyce Byers handing out flyers for her play, a major aspect of The First Shadow‘s story that also involved familiar characters like Jim Hopper, Ted and Karen Wheeler, Alan Munson, Bob Newby, the Hendersons, and the Sinclairs.

Volume 2 is also set to continue integrating The First Shadow‘s narrative in regard to Henry Creel’s dark past, with the truth about the cave that Max and Holly hide in being revealed in the stage play. As Hawkins takes its final stand against Vecna and the creatures of the Upside Down, The First Shadow takes on even greater importance in the context of the main Stranger Things series’ climactic conclusion.

Release Date

2016 – 2025-00-00

Network

Netflix

Showrunner

Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer

•