In Stranger Things season 5, there’s a chance that Max could help Eleven finally defeat Vecna. Sadie Sink’s tough-as-nails addition to the Hawkins crew in Stranger Things season 2 has held her own against Demodogs, the Mind Flayer, and Vecna himself during her time on the show, becoming Eleven’s best friend and a fan-favorite in the process. Never afraid to put herself in harm’s way for those she loves, Max has helped her friends and Hawkins survive their toughest battles through thick and thin.
Because of this, Max had a tough time in Stranger Things season 4. Seeing her brother Billy die in season 3 affected her deeply, causing her to shut herself off from her friends and become one of the victims to Vecna’s curse. With a little help from Lucas, Dustin, and Kate Bush, she survived Vecna’s initial attack and played a key role in the plan to strike back against him. In her usual fearless fashion, she offered herself as bait to Vecna so that the others could get close enough to kill him, but the plan went awry, and in the ensuing delays, she herself was killed – temporarily. Eleven intervened, bringing Max’s broken and blinded body back to life, though her consciousness was still seemingly lost.
Max’s consciousness has to be somewhere, however, and this could be exactly the weapon Eleven needs in the final fight against Vecna. There’s a very likely theory that Max is alive inside Vecna, because, as established by Dr. Brenner in Stranger Things season 4, Vecna’s victims are not just killed but consumed; they become part of him. If this is true, Max would have an unprecedented connection to the villain, including access to his thoughts.
Max’s Possible Connection To Vecna Could Be The Key To Eleven’s Victory
What sets Max apart from the other victims of Vecna is that, thanks to Eleven, she has a body to return to. If Eleven and the Hawkins crew can find a way to rescue Max’s consciousness, she’d very likely have critical information about Vecna that could turn the tide against him. Knowledge is power in any battle, and it’s possible that Max’s missing consciousness is actually the missing key Eleven needs to finally end the threat that’s been knocking at Hawkins’ door for so long.
Stranger Things’ season 4 ending left viewers with burning questions about the show’s impending final season. Max’s fate at the end of season 4 is horrific and seemingly devoid of hope; there’s no guarantee she will ever recover. But there are faint rays of light to be seen, if the clues about Vecna really do lead to Max’s consciousness being trapped with him. She's never been down for the count before, and it would be just like Max to endure a bit longer and play a pivotal role in defeating the man who tried, and failed, to kill her and her best friends.