With just days until the final season of Stranger Things premieres, fans believe a major clue to Vecna's downfall has already been revealed—and it centres on Max, not Eleven.
Season 4 saw Max (Sadie Sink) tormented by Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) and technically die before being revived by Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), leaving her in a coma. However, Dr Brenner (Matthew Modine) stated that Vecna doesn't just kill his victims—he 'consumes them'. This has led to theories that Max, having died, may have been consumed and now exists within Vecna's consciousness.
If Max is inside Vecna's mind, she could potentially help bring him down from within, either on her own or with Eleven's assistance. Reddit users have speculated that all of Vecna's victims might be 'with him' and could unite against him. One fan wrote: 'As Vecna has stated all of his victims are there with him so it might happen that all of them souls as well as the undead Max are able to chip in and go against him.'
Another theory suggests that when Vecna is defeated, Max's soul might return to her body only for her to die, finally at peace. However, some fans believe Max is 'safe' because if the writers intended to kill her, they would have done so in season 4.
Stranger Things season 5 will be released in three parts: part 1 on 27 November, part 2 on Christmas Day, and the finale on New Year's Eve.
