Stranger Things: Everything we know about Eleven’s past

It’s been three years since our last trip to Hawkins, so it’s not surprising that many of us found ourselves needing a recap of where the Netflix drama left off before diving into Stranger Things 4. But in order to get the most out of the new supersized episodes, it’s not only important to remember the events of season 3, but also Eleven’s life before the main events of season 1 even started.

In May, Millie Bobby Brown shared her thoughts with Jimmy Fallon. Stranger Things season 4 is going “to dig deep into [Eleven’s] beginning, and how she became who she is with the people around her.” The first teaser and the first eight minutes of the season premiere also focus on Eleven’s past, showing flashbacks to her time at Hawkins Lab (and a very violent incident we’ll get into below).

As Stranger Things creeps closer to the fifth and final season, we’re likely to get more concrete answers to all the show’s lingering mysteries, and details about Eleven’s origins are high on our need-to-know list. Last time Stranger Things focused heavily on her past was season 2, which aired way back in 2017, so you’re not alone if you’ve forgotten the crumbs the Duffer brothers have already left behind. Plus, there’s the 2019 prequel novel, Suspicious Minds, which revealed a lot of information about her parents that you wouldn’t know if you’ve only watched the show.

To help prepare you for Stranger Things 4 we’ve rounded up everything we already know about Eleven’s past, from what happened to her biological parents to her first brush with the Upside Down.

Eleven’s mother was a test subject in MKUltra

Image courtesy of Netflix

Eleven’s mother, Terry Ives, was one of the test subjects in MKUltra, which was a real-life CIA-sanctioned program in which the government conducted mind control experiments on people. In the series, college student Terry joined the program in 1969 under Dr. Brenner’s supervision. The experiments included submerging in tanks with sensory deprivation and taking psychedelic medications.

Terry didn’t know that she was pregnant at the time with her and her boyfriend Andrew Rich’s baby. If the name Andrew Rich doesn’t register for you, that’s because his identity was only revealed in Suspicious Minds. Andrew was killed in action during the Vietnam War so he never got to know he would be a father. However, Andrew’s death wasn’t a complete accident. Dr. Brenner had orchestrated getting Andrew expelled from college, therefore making him eligible for the draft — a move which not only served to frighten and punish Terry, but to make it even easier for Brenner to take their daughter away.

Dr. Brenner abducted Eleven at birth

Brenner took Terry’s baby and stripped her of Jane her name. Then he made her test subject 011. Brenner insisted on Eleven calling him “Papa,” making her see him as a father figure and therefore making her easier to manipulate.

In order to foster Eleven’s natural psychic abilities, she was constantly experimented on and punished harshly when she failed their tests, often being placed in solitary confinement. These experiences left Eleven severely traumatized and she used her psychic powers to murder a guard trying to put her in jail. Brenner did not punish Eleven because she had committed the crime, but instead showed her affection for Eleven and took pride in how well she was using her powers.

Hawkins Lab was home to Eleven (and Kali) as playmates.

Image courtesy of Netflix

Hawkins Lab gave Eleven the opportunity to play with the Rainbow Room alongside the rest of the test subjects. This is where Eleven (Eight) met Kali Prasad. When Eleven was just five years old, Terry met Kali at Hawkins Lab. Eleven and Terry finally connected in season 2 when Eleven shared a vision with her mother of El as a child. Eleven saw Terry in this vision and was determined to find Kali. Eleven followed her up in Chicago for season 2.

Terry suffered torture after trying to get Eleven back

Brenner covered up Eleven’s kidnapping by making it look as though Terry miscarried. While everyone else — including Terry’s sister Becky — bought the story, Terry knew her daughter was alive. Terry attempted to sue Brenner, the government and her daughter for taking it but was denied. Unable to resist, Terry, armed and determined, stormed Hawkins Lab on April 7, 1974 in order to get Eleven back. Terry found Eleven and Kali in the Rainbow Room. However, Terry was captured before Terry could flee with her daughter.

Ray Carroll, an officer in charge of Ray’s electroshock treatment program for Terry, was forced to administer it until Terry sustained severe brain damage. Terry then went into a state where she could not speak and became a complete catatonic. As a result, Terry was left repeating the same words describing the events of Eleven’s birth through her own torture: “breathe” (what Becky said when Terry went into labor); “sunflower” (the first thing she saw after the C-section); “rainbow” (the room where she found Eleven); “Three to the right. Four to the left,” (the combination to the safe where she kept her gun); and “450” (the voltage of the electroshock therapy).

In 1984, when Eleven discovered what had happened to her mother, she and Kali’s gang hunted down Ray and assaulted him in his home as revenge. Even though Kali had vowed to kill Ray, Eleven refused and left him alone.

It is possible that Eleven committed mass murder while she was eighteen.

Image courtesy of Netflix

Netflix released the first eight minutes of the season 4 premiere, and it showed us the most shocking look into Eleven’s past yet. Set in 1979, the clip shows Brenner arriving at the Rainbow Room, where he asks one of the young test subjects to come with him for more “lessons.” The tests are interrupted, however, by the sounds of screams and blaring alarms, and Brenner is soon knocked unconscious when the door flies off its hinges and slams into him.

Brenner arrives at the laboratory to discover that all of its employees have been brutally murdered. Everything, save for Eleven who is visibly furious and covered in blood. Brenner is assuming Eleven killed the children and staff. After all, she did kill a guard the year before, and we’ve seen Eleven struggle with violence as an anger response several times. Is Eleven capable of such a feat, or was she simply a witness? This is a big mystery that we’re hoping Stranger Things doesn’t wait until part 2 to solve.

Eleven accidentally opened the gates to the Upside Down

Brenner gave Eleven the instruction to spy on a Russian agent in 1983 after Eleven had developed enough eavesdropping skills. Eleven first heard about the Demogorgon as she was spying on a Russian agent. Brenner ordered Eleven to contact the creature once again, as she is a mad scientist. She was able this time to witness the Demogorgon devouring its victim. The Demogorgon was allowed to enter our world when Eleven, an inquisitive and scared child, reached out and touched it. While the Demogorgon massacred everyone it could to death, Eleven found a way out through the drain pipe, which was then discovered later by Mike and Dustin.

Since 1983, Dr. Brenner is presumed to be dead

Brenner divided his time searching for Eleven and looking into the Upside Down after Eleven fled Hawkins Lab. Brenner managed to catch Eleven in the school’s campus, but shortly after he did, the Demogorgon attacked him and nearly killed him. Dr. Owens became the Hawkins Lab director. Ray Carroll told Eleven and Kali that Brenner was still alive, and that he had the right to take them to him.