Stranger Things Star Confirms His Character Is Gay
A Stranger Things star has confirmed that their character is gay in the series, something fans might have seen this coming.
This fourth season of Stranger Things had a number of different storylines going within the main group of characters even if they were all focused on trying to take down Vecna. In this way, the Duffer Brothers were good about expanding the emotions and relationships among the core group while also adding layers to each person along the way. It was quite an accomplishment. And we did begin to learn something new about one of the characters this season, namely that Noah Schnapp’s Will Byers might have begun developing feelings for a friend and fellow member of The Party. It wasn’t explicitly stated in the Stranger Things season, but fans were definitely left wondering. Now, Schnapp has confirmed that speculation in a recent interview.
While speaking with Variety about Stranger Things Season 4, Noah Schnapp expanded on a number of things having to do with the show and specifically with his character of Will. There’s a discussion about how this season saw Will struggling to communicate his feeling with Mike (Finn Wolfhard), desperately wanting to be accepted (even loved) by his friend who was going through his own stuff with Eleven. While it was never expressly said in the season that Will was in love with Mike, it was definitely there for all to see. And Schnapp was able to confirm that to Variety, saying that it was no accident that Will’s attention and love for Mike was clearly part of the overall Stranger Things story. Check it out:
“It was always kind of there, but you never really knew, is it just him growing up slower than his friends? Now that he’s gotten older, they made it a very real, obvious thing. Now it’s 100% clear that he is gay and he does love Mike. But before, it was a slow arc. I think it is done so beautifully, because it’s so easy to make a character just like all of a sudden be gay.”
Those who’ve watched Stranger Things from the beginning could probably see some of this coming. There have been hints and allusions to Will’s love for Mike over the years. But this season was clear to make it a part of the overall storyline, watching Will truly struggle to reach out to Mike in a way that felt correct, while also not wanting to tip his hand about the true feelings. The only one who really saw it was Jonathan who notices it to be the case when the group is riding in the van to Las Vegas. He later talks to Will (in code) about how he’s there for him no matter what. Schnapp lets on that this scene wasn’t actually in the original script but was added once the interaction between Will and Mike had played out.
Where this story ends up going is anyone’s guess. And it will be interesting to see if the writers make it a core piece of the final season. We can already suspect that Will has a major part in the final pieces of the Stranger Things puzzle considering that he still has a connection to Vecna, saying he can feel the presence when they are all in Hawkins. But in terms of his relationship with Mike, how that plays out is anyone’s guess.
It’s a testament to the Duffer Brothers’ writing and the way the actors bring it to the screen that they’ve been able to build this Will story in such an authentic way over the years. How things shake out with the Party and the town of Hawkins will be one of the most anticipated stories we will ever see when Stranger Things finally returns to Netflix.
