(Photo courtesy Netflix)
After the conclusion of season 4 of the hit Netflix series “Stranger Things,” Noah Schnapp revealed, in an interview with Variety, his character Will Byers’ largest struggle this season was accepting his sexuality and identity.
Will deals with a lot throughout the series — between being abducted to becoming possessed by a demonic entity known as the Mind Flayer — however, season 4 encompasses his struggle with sexuality and identity along with his typical demonic encounters.
“This season was a new thing for me. I had to explore (Will) navigating his personal identity issues and struggling with growing up and assimilating into high school. It was new for me,” Schnapp told Variety.
Throughout the series, fans have speculated Will has feelings for his best friend Mike — played by Finn Wolfhard. This aspect to the show has gradually developed and now, four seasons later, Schnapp has confirmed Will is gay.
Schnapp said he performed his role with the understanding that Will simply loves his best friend but struggles with knowing if he’ll be accepted or not. He said with each character having girlfriends and clubs to fit in, Will has nothing.
“Will has never really found anywhere to fit in. I think that’s why so many people come up to me and tell me that they love Will, and they resonate with him so much, because it’s such a real character,” Schnapp said.
Schnapp said the Duffer brothers, creators of “Stranger Things,” purposely took their time with the development of Will’s sexuality. As a result, Schnapp said he believes this made the character more relatable.
“I think it is done so beautifully, because it’s so easy to make a character just like all of a sudden be gay,” Schnapp said. “People have come up to me — I was just in Paris and this, like, 40-year-old man came up to me and he was like, ‘Wow, this Will character made me feel so good. And I related to it so much. That is exactly who I was when I was a kid.’ That just made me so happy to hear. They are writing this real character and this real journey and real struggle and they’re doing it so well.”
Schnapp has recently been making waves on social media over a dispute between Doja Cat. Schnapp posted private messages between himself and the rapper, revealing she wanted Schnapp to set her up with his co-star Joseph Quinn.
Schnapp said he wasn’t thinking it was serious when he made the messages public and apologized very soon after the situation went south. Schnapp said both are on good terms now, despite fans making the situation a bigger deal than it was.
“Yeah, I mean, look, I’m super unserious on social media and pretty goofy, so I posted that not thinking too much of it, but obviously it hurt her feelings,” he said. “So, as I should, I apologized and she was totally okay with it, and was like, “I’m sorry how I reacted.” It was all good. I love her. I’m like the biggest fan of her music, and I told her that. I was like, you’re literally my role model. It’s all good.”
As fans wonder what “Stranger Things” season 5 — confirmed by series creators to be the final one — will bring, Schnapp said he is in the dark about what happens as everyone else.
“I called them a few weeks ago and I was like, ‘What’s your plan with Will? Like, with his sexuality, but also with the Upside Down and all of that?’ They have a lot to get to. They’re still working it out, but they have their end goal,” Schnapp said. “There’s so many different things they have to address. Obviously, we hope for a coming out scene, and I also want to see them address this connection to the Mind Flayer and how that fits into the world. And I’ve always been wondering, why was Will the first victim and the first one captured? I just want to see it all tie in and all work out. So I’m excited to see what happens.”
Schnapp and the rest of the fans of the show will have to wait to see how it all ends. “Stranger Things” season 5 is expected sometime in 2024. Seasons 1-4 are all currently available to stream on Netflix.
