Vecna actor pushes back on 'Conformity Gate' secret-episode theory

Jamie Campbell Bower has subtly addressed a fan theory that a secret final episode of Stranger Things will be released after the finale, Independent.co reports. The theory, nicknamed Conformity Gate, holds that the lengthy epilogue showing the young leads moving on was an illusion created by Vecna.

Discussion of the idea intensified on TikTok, with fans poring over details such as the placement of extras, background characters’ hands and on-set props for supposed clues, even though the Duffer brothers say multiple endings were not filmed. Some viewers suspected a surprise episode would drop on Wednesday (7 January) after Netflix posted a cryptic message with the caption “Your future is on the way,” but at the time of writing no new episode has appeared.

Reactions among fans are divided, with some urging others to move on and one person on X/Twitter calling the fandom’s response “a collective psychosis” over what they see as unsatisfying writing. Speaking on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Campbell Bower said the last episode was “the ending the show deserves,” adding: “Even as the actor that plays Vecna, like, it just – it feels right.” The finale’s biggest dispute concerned Eleven’s fate: she seemingly dies after destroying the Upside Down, yet Mike chooses to believe she is alive and the camera cuts to her in the future.

Key Topics

Culture, Stranger Things, Vecna, Jamie Campbell Bower, Duffer Brothers, Netflix