Jamie Campbell Bower Brought His Signature “Undead” Style to the Saint Laurent Show
If you’re a Stranger Things fanatic, you’ve likely had a night terror or two about Vecna—the monstrous, skeletal villain portrayed by actor Jamie Campbell Bower in season four. Thanks to Vecna’s elaborate and gruesome prosthetics and Bower’s own gravelly voice, the actor has become a world-wide phenomenon. (Not to mention, many fans of the show are still in disbelief that Vecna is actually “sexy.”) Of the viral attention he’s gotten from the show, Bower tells Vogue, “I am and always will be incredibly grateful to not only be a part of this show, but also to play this character. The way Matt and Ross [Duffer, the creators of the show] write lends itself to such a desire to strive that, for me, being in Stranger Things is truly the gift that I never thought possible.”
Still, Bower traded in his Vecna suit this week in favor of a much sleeker one: The actor touched down in Paris for the Saint Laurent fall 2023 menswear show yesterday and allowed Vogue in on his classic Parisian day. “To see Anthony [Vaccarello]’s vision and creative talent come to life is always the highlight of fashion week for me,” says Bower. “I certainly am interested in the creative aspect of fashion design. It’s an art, so I follow it out of curiosity and love of the art.”
The star began his day in Paris with a fitting for the show, then had a moment to tour the streets. “Our time was brief, but there’s so much I love about this city,” Bower says. “From freezing winter walks along the Seine, to the food. My favorite restaurant is Chez Julien, and it’s a must every time I come.” The actor also made a pit stop at the Père Lachaise cemetery. “It’s a favorite haunt of mine,” Bower says.
After a brief cat nap back at the hotel, Bower then changed into his polished yet macabre look for the show. “My personal style floats somewhere between gravedigger, the undead, and outlaw,” says Bower, who slipped into Saint Laurent’s long, double-breasted coat and wide-leg trousers. “I wanted to feel more suited and booted at this show. It’s classic Saint Laurent, and the cut of the coat I went for is a cut that I have always adored. And of course, it had to be black.”
At the show, Bower was first impressed by the theatrics of the presentation itself. “From a production and fan perspective, to see Charlotte Gainsbourg play the piano at the end of the show filled me with joy,” says Bower. “Anthony has a way of combining influences and his personality into collections that continue to be consistently effortless and cool, and I leave every show wanting every look in my wardrobe. However, the closing look from the show with the floaty cape really was the pinnacle for me.”
After his whirlwind fashion week experience, Bower will now be setting his sights on Stranger Things’s fifth and final season, which begins filming sometime this year. He, of course, can’t tell us much yet. But, whenever it finally airs, he says it’ll be worth the wait. “I think we can expect monumental drama, a continued expansion of the world, and the end to end all ends,” he says. We’re already hooked.
Below, inside Bower’s Saint Laurent show day.