Stranger Things 2 character guide: Who is Eleven?

Even after season one, we're still not completely sure who Eleven in Stranger Things is. However, this much we know: Eleven is a 12 year-old-girl and the subject of a government experiment at the hands of sinister scientist Dr. Brenner, who kept her in a research facility just outside of Hawkins for her entire life.

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Though she calls Brenner "Papa", it is unlikely that Brenner is her actual father. Instead, it is strongly hinted in season one that Eleven is the daughter of Terry Ives, a woman who Chief Hopper and Joyce Byers come across in their hunt for information on the disappearance of Joyce's son Will.

Ives had participated in a scientific study with Dr Brenner in the early 1970s which involved psychedelic drugs and sensory deprivation tanks, not knowing that she was pregnant. While the record states that she lost her daughter, Jane, through miscarriage, she is adamant that Brenner had kidnapped the child. Jane would be Eleven's age, too...

The Duffer Brothers suggested in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that the mystery of Eleven's past will be resolved in season two: ""We do get into her story and backstory. We learn about where she came from and how she came into the world and the program that resulted in her.”

Who plays Eleven in Stranger Things?

13-year-old Millie Bobby Brown rocketed to fame in the summer of 2016 after her standout performance as the gifted youngster. While she had previously appeared in minor roles in Grey's Anatomy, Modern Family and NCIS, the Duffer Brothers' sci-fi series was her first major role.

In the year and a bit since, she has garnered an impressive 4.4 million Instagram followers and has been tipped as a style icon by Vogue.

What happened to Eleven at the end of Stranger Things season one?

Eleven was the hero of the season one finale. As Joyce and Hopper went inside the Upside Down to save Will, Eleven disintegrated the Demogorgon with telekinesis – though she also disappeared herself in the process.

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While Mike, Lucas and Dustin think she is dead, Hooper seemed to know she was alive: at the end of the episode he left some Eggo Waffles in a crate in the woods for her. The first trailer for season two showed her trapped in the Demogorgon's dimension, though as the 'right-side up' seems to be slowly turning into the Upside Down, she probably won't stay hidden for long.


Meet the cast of Stranger Things 2

Mike Wheeler – Finn Wolfhard

Finn Wolfhard in Stranger Things 2 (Netflix, HF)

Will Byers – Noah Schnapp

Will Stranger Things

Dustin Henderson – Gaten Matarazzo

Dustin Stranger Things

Lucas Sinclair – Caleb McLaughlin

Stranger Things Lucas

Chief Jim Hopper – David Harbour

Jim Hopper in Stranger Things (Netflix, JG)

Joyce Byers – Winona Ryder

Stranger Things Joyce

Jonathan Byers – Charlie Heaton

Stranger Things 2 Jonathan

Nancy Wheeler – Natalia Dyer

Nancy Wheeler Stranger Things

Steve Harrington – Joe Keery

Joe Keery as Steve Harrington in Stranger Things Netflix, JG)

New for Stranger Things 2...

Max – Sadie Sink

Sadie Sink as Max in Stranger Things 2 (Netflix, JG)

Bob Newby – Sean Astin

Sean Astin Stranger Things

Billy – Dacre Montgomery

Dacre Montgomery as Billy in Stranger Things (Netflix, TL)

Roman – Linnea Berthelsen

Stranger Things 2 poster (Netflix, JG)
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