Jamie Campbell Bower reveals the one thing he wanted to change about Vecna

Jamie Campbell Bower has revealed the one thing he wished he could have changed about playing Vecna in Stranger Things.

The 37-year-old actor, who portrayed the terrifying villain in the Netflix series, said he loved bringing the character to life but admitted there was one part of Vecna’s design that he wanted to improve after his debut in season 4.

Speaking during Entertainment Weekly’s Brave Warriors panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2026, Bower explained that Vecna’s feet were the main aspect he hoped could be adjusted to make the character feel more natural to play.

“Shoes are a big thing because they do affect the way that you walk,” Bower said. “It’s something I’m always focused on.”

The actor recalled discussing possible changes with prosthetics designer Barrie Gower after filming season 4.

“I remember after doing season 4 of Stranger Things, Barrie was like, ‘If there’s one thing you can change, what would it be?’ And I’d be like, the feet, I’d make them more tactile,” he shared.

However, when season 5 arrived, the change did not happen exactly as Bower had imagined.

Instead, Vecna’s feet were created with more digital effects, including CGI-enhanced details.

“Of course, we get to season 5, and even my toes are CG, so there’s no reason to worry about that,” he joked. “But that was what I wanted.”

Vecna’s updated appearance in the fifth and final season relied more heavily on CGI, giving the character a more damaged and streamlined look while also reducing the amount of time Bower had to spend in the makeup chair.

Gower previously revealed that Bower’s transformation into Vecna during season 4 required an intense makeup process that often began in the early hours of the morning.

“We could be starting at 1am, 2am to get him ready for 8am or 9am,” Gower previously told People.

“We would have a whole shooting day of maybe 10 to 12 hours. Then we would be de-rigging him two hours in the evening.”

By the time production reached season 5, the makeup team had refined the process.

Gower said improvements in materials and techniques reduced Bower’s time in the makeup chair to around three hours.

“The way we actually manufactured the makeup was quite different to what we did on season 4,” Gower explained. “We had different materials and different mould-making procedures.”

He added that removing the makeup at the end of the day also became much easier, taking less than an hour compared with the longer process during season 4.

Despite the demanding transformation process, Bower’s performance as Vecna became one of the most memorable elements of Stranger Things season 4.

The character is set to return for the show’s fifth and final season.