Stranger Things star Sadie Sink explains how Vecna's mind lair scene was filmed. Sink stars as Max Mayfield in the science-fiction horror series which follows the core group of teenagers from Hawkins, Indiana as they once again battle forces from the parallel dimension known as the Upside Down. Set six months after the Battle of Starcourt, where Max lost her brother Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery) to the Mindflayer, the high schooler is tormented by the trauma of the harrowing experience and the guilt from the possibility that maybe she could have done more to save Billy.
Stranger Things season 4 finds Max having trouble sleeping due to vivid nightmares that bring her back to the night at the Starcourt mall where she witnessed her brother impaled by the Upside Down demon. Although she initially believes the nightmares are just a product of the residual emotional pain, Max soon realizes that they are caused by an evil telepathic being from the Upside Down known as Vecna who has been tormenting his victims and killing them in a gruesome manner. Max's mind is eventually taken by Vecna to his lair in the parallel dimension, a fractured version of the Creel house bathed in a red hue, where she is trapped by his vines and held in place so he can kill her.
In a recent interview during Netflix's Geeked Week, Sink shared details about how Vecna's mind lair scene was filmed. After watching a snippet of the scene with members of the cast, the actor recalled the arduous week-long shoot, explaining the set and the physical harness she used. Read what she said below.
"That was shot over, I don't know how many, I think it might have been a week that we spent on that, or like four days, I guess. A lot of time spent in the harness, I guess. Yeah, it was pretty intense and like all the vines and stuff. Like none of that's there. We did really luck out this year because Vecna was pretty much fully practical effects. Which kind of made it easier for me so I'm not staring at a man in a green suit."
Although Sink described that much of the scene props, such as the vines holding her in place against the tree-like pillar in Vecna's lair, were not actually there, she was pleased that a lot of practical effects were used like Vecna's suit and much of the elements of the Creel house (as seen in the accompanying behind-the-scenes footage). She also recalled that she spent much of her time in a harness, most likely to simulate the moment in which Vecna lifted her off of the ground right before she was to be killed. Four days of staring at a humanoid demon while being strapped into a harness, as well as spending a significant part of the shoot running as Max attempted to escape Vecna's wrath, would definitely contribute to Sink calling the experience on that set "intense."
Vecna's mind lair scene has gone on to be one of the most popular moments in Stranger Things season 4. Partly due to Sink's breathtaking performance as she escaped Vecna and returned to her friends, partly due to the emotional montage of images of Max and her friends from the previous two seasons, and partly due to scene being expertly edited to Kate Bush's song "Running Up That Hill." As a result, the song has gained a new level of popularity, and reached the top ten on music charts in multiple countries 37 years after its initial release. Vecna's lair proved to be a pivotal scene in the series, but it will most likely not be the last time the location will be seen as the Hawkins teens aim to take on Vecna in the Upside Down when Stranger Things Volume 2 releases later this summer.
Stranger Things season 4, part 1 is now streaming on Netflix. Part 2 streams July 1, 2022.
Source: Netflix