Jamie Campbell Bower Officially Makes His Henry Creel Debut In Prequel Stranger Things: The First Shadow

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Jamie Campbell Bower has deepened his association with the character of Vecna. In addition to reprising the role in the upcoming fifth and final season of Stranger Things, he recently made his Broadway debut playing Henry Creel in Stranger Things: The First Shadow.

Since its debut in 2016, Stranger Things quickly became a hugely popular show, both for Netflix and on television in general. The series expanded into a full franchise, and in December 2023, a prequel play was released. Just before the final season airs, Campbell Bower stepped in to play the role originally performed by Louis McCartney, taking over the character for a special appearance.

The play, which premiered on Broadway on April 22, 2025, doesn’t include the actors from the original production, but Jamie Bower has said he was considered for a role. Bower first became known for playing Henry Creek/001/Vecna in the fourth season of the show and returned as an even more powerful character in Season 5.

He unexpectedly showed up on stage at the Marquis Theatre in New York City on Friday night. He appeared at the very end of the play, during a concluding segment that connects the story to the overall performance.

A key moment happens when Campbell Bower’s character appears – it’s when Henry first encounters a young Eleven in the Rainbow Room at Hawkins Lab. This scene, featured in one of the show’s highest-rated episodes – Season 4, Episode 7, titled “The Massacre at Hawkins Lab” – sets the main plot in motion and explores the connection between them.

Stranger Things: The First Shadow is a play that tells the story leading up to the events of the show. Set in Hawkins, Indiana, in 1959, it was written by Kate Trefry, along with the creators of Stranger Things, the Duffer Brothers, and Jack Thorne, who also wrote Adolescence.

The Harry Potter actor explained his unexpected appearance by saying he was simply asked to do it. He shared that it wasn’t something he’d planned for a long time, and the opportunity came up “about a month ago.”

The actor mentioned he’s watched the film twice and really enjoyed Louis McCartney’s performance, calling him ‘brilliant.’

Jamie Campbell Bower Admitted the Prequel Deepened His Connection to Vecna

The actor, new to Broadway, shared that a related story released around the time of the show’s fifth season finale deeply influenced his work. Filming for the show’s fifth and final season began in January 2024 and concluded in December. The play itself had a limited preview run in November before its official premiere on December 14th.

I definitely learned a lot from working on the play, and I’ll share more about that later,” the actor said with a smile. He also confessed he felt a strong connection with his character, saying, “I really fell in love with him while playing the role, and I truly cared for him.”

The actor said he felt deeply sympathetic towards the character after seeing the play, especially considering the period of the character’s life it depicted.

Stranger Things Season 5 returns for Vol. 2 on Dec. 25.

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2025-12-20 17:36