We Haven’t Seen the Last of The Grandfather Clock, According to This “Stranger Things” Theory

A grandfather clock chimes four times and chills run through all the kids of Stranger Things’ bodies because they all know it means Vecna, the evil entity that rules the Upside Down, is coming for the kill. Stranger Things has been using the grandfather clock in their marketing for season four since 2020 and, throughout the new season, it is used as a cautionary signal that something wicked this way comes.

What Does the Grandfather Clock in “Stranger Things” Mean?

The new season shows that the four chimes of the grandfather clock symbolize the four victims Vecna needs to claim in order to enter the Right Side Up and take over humanity. Early in season four, Vecna terrorizes the cheerleader Chrissy, Nancy’s newspaper partner Fred, and Lucas’s basketball teammate Patrick one by one, all of whom see the grandfather clock. When Max is taken by Vecna, she explains seeing the clock and the terrors that followed. First, she gets headaches and nosebleeds followed by visions of her worst memories, like her brother Billy’s death.

How Are the Grandfather Clock and Vecna Connected?

Season four reveals how the grandfather clock is directly connected to Vecna’s origins. Before he became the terrifying dark wizard of the Upside Down, Vecna was Henry Creel, a troubled kid living in Hawkins in a house where the grandfather clock resides. When he kills his family by gouging their eyes out with his powers, the origin of his place of power becomes clear. Later in the season, it is revealed that Vecna is connected to the house and uses it as a base to create the hive mind and power all the demo-creatures in the Upside Down.

Did the Grandfather Clock Have Significance Before “Stranger Things” Season 4?

But season four is not the first time we hear the chimes of the clock. Twitter user @bampac29 posted a video showing that, in season one, the clock chimes when Will is taken by the Demogorgon. Then, in season three, the four chimes ring out right before Billy is possessed by the Mind Flayer. This shows that Vecna has been around in some capacity since the beginning, but was using the other creatures of the Upside Down to do his bidding in the Right Side Up.

According to the YouTube channel Spoiler Explained, as well as a post by Reddit user @StrangerWill, the clock could be a gateway into the Upside Down and amplifies Vecna’s ability to open other gates throughout Hawkins

@StrangerWill also theorizes that destroying the clock could help defeat Vecna in the end, but whether that’s the case or not will have to wait until season five premieres in 2023.