Actor Matthew Modine has long held that his Stranger Things character Dr. Brenner possessed special abilities. He developed this idea to explain the doctor's survival through key events in the series. A recent stage play adds new details to the character's backstory.
Modine responded to a fan question on Instagram by suggesting that Dr. Brenner must have had powers to lead the Hawkins Lab program. He proposed that the character was Subject 000, given that Vecna is Subject 001.
The actor has discussed this personal theory since at least 2022. In an interview that year he pointed to scenes where Brenner survived attacks and resisted Eleven's powers as evidence.
The stage play The First Shadow reveals that Dr. Brenner's father, Captain Brenner, was actually Subject 000. The captain survived a classified incident involving the USS Eldridge.
Whether Dr. Brenner himself had abilities remains unresolved in the show. The Duffers have noted that Modine often defended the character against villain labels during production.