Jamie Campbell Bower plays Vecna in Stranger Things Season 4, but before that, he has a list of impressive appearances already.
Stranger Things took a whirling turn from the children-focused TV series it started out as when its fourth season began exploring even darker themes. Granted, the show has always shown gore and horror. However, nothing could have prepared you for the shock value of Season four.
At the center of it all is the supernatural predator known as Vecna, who, as it turns out, has been the one behind everything that has happened at Hawkins. The character, portrayed by Jamie Campbell Bower, required hours of prosthetic makeup every day to be brought to life, and the result has been this horrifying squelchy, mindreading, bone-breaking monster.
However, many have been inquiring to know who the actor portraying the villain is, and in this article, we look at some of the facts about Bower’s life.
See video of Jamie Bower or Stranger Things Vecna actor here:
To start, we first look at 10 facts about Jamie Campbell Bower’s early life and career to get an insight into who he is and what he has done.
10 facts about Stranger Things Vecna actor Jamie Campbell Bower
- Jamie was born on November 22, 1988, in London, England.
- His first taste for entertainment likely came from his parents: his mother, Anne, works as a music manager, while David, his father, works for the Gibson Guitar Corporation.
- You may not know this, but he is a descendant of Sir John Campbell, more popularly referred to as 7th Baronet of Ardnamurchan and Lieutenant Governor of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
- Jamie started as a part-time model after his friend Laura Michelle Kelly, an actress herself, recommended him to her agent.
- Then, he began his acting career in small roles such as Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Rocker in the 2008 crime film RocknRolla and Jack in the 2008 Dutch war film titled Winter in Wartime.
- Soon, his career picked up after he got cast as the vampire Caius Volturi in The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) and two Twilight: Breaking Dawn films.
- In 2010, he played a young Gellert Grindelwald in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, before reprising the same role in the 2018 film Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
- The actor has also appeared in the music video for “Never Let Me Go” by Florence + The Machine. And he is the lead singer and frontman of the English punk rock band Counterfeit.
- His other notable acting credits include Jace Wayland in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Joe in Bend It Like Beckham, and of course, Henry Creel or Vecna in Stranger Things Season four.
- Jamie is apparently single at this time, but he was in a relationship with actress Bonnie Wright, who played Ginny Weasley in the Harry Potter film series.
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Jamie Campbell Bower early life
Concerning his early life, the actor had an eventful childhood. He attended Bedales School and was a member of the National Youth Music Theatre and the National Youth Theatre. His music interests came from his parents, who had careers in the music industry. However, although he would be making music for the rest of his life, it is not where his fame would come from, as life is usually unpredictable in that way.
Instead, he found his way into the acting industry in the same way that several movie stars before him have done: through modeling. Again, it was all very unconventional, as you will learn.
Jamie Campbell Bower acting career
Jamie’s friend, Laura Michelle Kelly, who played Mary Poppins in the West End production Mary Poppins, introduced him to her modeling agent. His looks got him a part-time role as a model with Select Model Management in London.
Before long, he started getting acting jobs, with the official first being as Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007). Janie Campbell Bower was 19 when he starred in Sweeney Todd. Then he portrayed Rocker in the 2008 crime film RocknRolla and Jack in the 2008 Dutch war film titled Winter in Wartime. He also starred in the 2009 remake of the 1967 British series The Prisoner as Number 11–12. That same year, his fortunes changed.
Stranger Things Vecna actor in Twilight
He got to play the vampire Caius Volturi in the film The Twilight Saga: New Moon and both Twilight: Breaking Dawn films. Suddenly, he was a favorite for Young Adult book adaptions.
Jamie Campbell Bower in Harry Potter
He played the role of a young Gellert Grindelwald, the dark wizard in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010). A role which he reprised in the film Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018). Toby Regbo, who played young Albus Dumbledore, is the only other actor to appear in both film franchises besides Bower. Another role that Bowie briefly played was as King Arthur in the 2011 television series Camelot.
He also played Jace Wayland in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013). Bower began playing Joe in the West End musical production Bend It Like Beckham in June 2015.
In 2017, he was on the TNT original series Will. He was announced to star in the prelude series to Game of Thrones, titled Bloodmoon, but HBO later decided not to pick the show up in October 2019. It would have also been known as The Long Night.
Following that disappointment, he starred in the 2020 film Six Days of Sistine, which co-starred Elarica Johnson. Bower has voiced Skiff in the Thomas & Friends franchise since 2015 and has contributed to the TV show, two home videos, and the feature film Sodor’s Legend of the Lost Treasure.
Stranger Things Vecna or Henry Creel (One)
His role as Henry Creel or Vecna (also known as One) in Stranger Things Season 4 could become a career-defining moment for him. In an interview, Jamie Campbell Bower revealed that the prosthetic makeup that he wore for his Vecna role took up to eight hours a day to complete.
See video on how Stranger Things SFX Artists Created Vecna
He also revealed that it took a month after he was approached for the role before he even knew that it had anything to do with Stranger Things. Apparently, the mischievous creators, the Duffer brothers, gave the actor pages from the 1996 thriller Primal Fear and the 1987 horror flick Hellraiser. Bowie had thought he was preparing for a role as Dracula or even Voldemort.
Colleagues on the show, like Millie Bobby Brown (who played Eleven), are said to have burst into tears the first time she saw the Vecna monster finished, and Grace Van Dien (who played Chrissy) was terrified.
Jamie Campbell Bower music career
Away from his acting, Jamie has had a thrilling music career. He was the frontman and singer for the English punk rock band Counterfeit, which released its first album in March 2017, and had a US tour in the same year. In November 2020, Bower announced the band’s split through their Instagram page.
Also, in 2012, he appeared in the music video for “Never Let Me Go” by Florence + The Machine. Two years before that, he starred in the music video for “Young (Belane)” by The Xcerts.
Personal life – is Jamie Campbell Bower married?
Not much is known about Jamie Bower’s personal life because he prefers to keep things low-key when he is away from the screen. However, back in 2010, he was in a pretty committed relationship with Bonnie Wright, who starred as Ginny Weasley in the Harry Potter film series. The two had met during the filming of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1. They had an intense romance which resulted in an engagement in April 2011. However, it didn’t lead to marriage as one would expect. For undisclosed reasons, the couple decided to end their engagement in June 2012.
Bonnie Wright has since moved on and is married to her longtime boyfriend Andrew Lococo, but it seems Jamie is still enjoying bachelorhood. In 2014, he allegedly dated Lilly Collins (singer Phil Collins daughter) but they split up after five years together.
Net worth
According to Celebrity Net Worth blog, Jamie Campbell Bower is worth about $3 million in 2022. However, we may have to wait for Forbes list to feature him before we can confirm his net worth as many online blogs reach hasty conclusions through roundups and guessing.
Conclusion
Jamie Campbell Bower has made a name for himself with his impressive mannerisms and many times, as a villainous character. While you may not particularly like his appearance on stage because he is after your hero’s life, you can’t deny that he executes as close to perfection as possible. Definitely, he would start getting more mainstream roles after completing his job as Stranger Things Vecna actor.
Still in his 30s, Jamie Bower has many more years of acting left in him, and we will be seeing more of him in the future. We hope to!
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