Stranger Things star plays into fan romance theories for season 5

Stranger Things might be about terrifying monsters, government conspiracies, and small-town mysteries, but for some fans, the romantic relationships between the show's characters are just as important.

There's the fan-favorite couple, Eleven and Mike, whose on-again, off-again romance has kept viewers hooked since the first season. There's also Max and Lucas, star-crossed lovers that you still can't help but root for. Of course, there are several other romantic pairings as well.

But what really surprised fans in the fourth season was when Will, long portrayed as shy, sensitive, and often overshadowed by the chaos around him, indirectly confessed his love for his best friend Mike. While trying to be there for Mike, who was scared of losing Eleven, Will delivered an emotional, heartfelt speech that he framed as coming from Eleven but was really a reflection of his own feelings.

Although it wasn't a direct love confession, the scene was undeniably intimate and revealing, showing Will’s deep affection and admiration for Mike while also exposing his own fears of being different and unaccepted. Mike, however, didn't catch the true meaning behind Will’s words, interpreting them as support for his relationship with Eleven rather than a personal confession, and Will was left to cry.

But while things didn't quite work out the way Will had hoped, some fans are hoping that this emotional buildup will finally pay off in Stranger Things season 5. With the series heading into its highly anticipated fifth and final chapter, viewers are eagerly speculating whether Will will have the chance to openly express his feelings for Mike and whether the long-teased Byler romance will become canon.

Adding to the excitement, Noah Schnapp, who plays Will, has been playfully fueling these fan theories on social media. In a TikTok video posted on Oct. 27, Schnapp smiled as he read a fan comment asking if “Byler”—the fan-favorite pairing of Will and Mike—would happen in the upcoming season. While he didn’t confirm anything, he jokingly acknowledged how often fans mention it and how he always ignores it.

But it's the caption to the video that had us buzzing. In the caption, Schnapp replies to the fan comment by saying, "Will it happen?" with a thinking face emoji. Now, what could this mean? While Schnapp doesn’t directly confirm a romantic storyline, his playful response is enough to get fans’ imaginations running wild.

It doesn't help that just a few days before, he posted another TikTok teasing an upcoming love story in season 5. This time, the video was set to Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now.” In the video, he's shown covering his mouth in shock. There's text over the video that reads, "This song will be in season 5.... I wonder why" with another thinking face emoji.

Additionally, the video's caption reads, “Y’all are on to something..." What did Schnapp mean by this? Could he be hinting again at Byler becoming a real thing? Or, perhaps he's hinting that his Will character will have a romantic storyline in the fifth season, just not with Mike.

It's already been confirmed that Stranger Things season 5 will explore Will's sexuality. However, I personally don't think we'll see him exploring his sexuality with Mike. There might be a scene where he comes out to his friends, but Mike and Eleven are basically endgame. I can't see the show diverting from this established romantic arc. It's more likely that we'll see Will paired up with someone else, but we'll just have to wait and see how everything plays out.

The first batch of episodes of Stranger Things season 5 is set to drop on Netflix on Nov. 26, at 12:00 a.m. PT/3:00 a.m. ET.