Who is Holly’s Imaginary Friend? Who is Mr. Whatsit in Stranger Things?

In the fifth season of Netflix’s ‘Stranger Things,’ the focus shifts towards Holly, the youngest Wheeler sibling, who had been on the sidelines so far. While her siblings, Mike and Nancy, have played a pivotal role in saving Hawkins from monsters that come from the Upside Down, Holly has remained unaware of these developments, despite noting some unusual things over the years. In the final season of the show, Holly is put front and center as the mystery of her imaginary friend deepens, and it turns out that she is in much more danger than previously anticipated. Her seemingly harmless imaginary friend, whom she calls Mr. Whatsit, isn’t quite as imaginary. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Mr. Whatsit’s True Identity Reveals a New Danger to Hawkins

In its first episode, ‘Stranger Things’ Season 5 reveals that Holly Wheeler has a secret friend whom she calls Mr. Whatsit. This is a reference to the character of Mrs. Whatsit in Madeleine L’Engle’s 1962 novel, ‘A Wrinkle in Time.’ Holly is seen reading the book, which also helps her understand a lot of what’s going on around her, just like her brother and his friends use the Dungeons and Dragons references to understand Upside Down and its monsters. In the book, Mrs. Whatsit is a good character who helps the protagonist, and the imaginary friend appears in a similar capacity to Holly. He warns her about the terrible things that are about to happen, especially that the monsters are coming to get her. Of course, no one around her takes her seriously, as everyone believes that the imaginary friend is simply in her head. It isn’t until much later that it is revealed that Mr. Whatsit is very real.

He is none other than Vecna, who appears to Holly and several other kids as Henry Creel, and he is nowhere near as well-intentioned as Mrs. Whatsit from the novel. He uses a friendly and charming demeanor to win over the kids, particularly the ones who he thinks are more vulnerable to his attack because they are loners or outcasts. He gets inside their heads, presenting himself as someone trustworthy, which makes it easier for him to convince them that he is saving them. In the second episode, he holds Holly captive in his mind prison. He presents it as a safe haven for her, and it is easier for her to accept it because she already believes that he is someone she can trust completely. Later, of course, she discovers how wrong she’d been in believing Mr. Whatsit’s words. She discovers that he is Vecna, a malevolent monster intent on destroying Hawkins. But by then, it is too late.

Meanwhile, Vecna works his magic with other kids as well. He targets Henry and a bunch of other vulnerable children. He’d planned to bring them all to his mind prison, believing that they’d be easy to manipulate because they are weak. However, he is proven wrong as Holly comes up with a way to escape his captivity, while Derek and the other kids fight on the outside. By the end of the fourth season, it becomes clear that Mr. Whatsit, aka Vecna, has something more sinister planned for the kids, as Holly and some other kids are trapped somewhere in the Upside Down while he makes them think that they are safe and sound in his house. The true extent of his plan will become clearer in the second half of the season. For now, however, it seems that he has gone back to what he intended in Season 1 when he kidnapped Will.

Read More: Is Young Will AI in Stranger Things Season 5? Was Noah Schnapp De-aged?