What Noah Schnapp has said about Will's sexuality in Stranger Things

Stranger Things has been known to drop some truly shocking plot twists, but Netflix's worldwide phenomenon has also delivered amazing, grounded character development amid the larger-than-life supernatural moments. By far, the show's best character arcs has been that of Will Byers, who began the series kidnapped into the Upside Down and becomes Vecna's target in season 5.

In Stranger Things 4, as the team battled Vecna, the teenage characters were going through what all teens go through at one point, whether that's bullying like Eleven or figuring out who you are like Will. One of the biggest questions that came out of the show's penultimate season was about Will's sexuality and whether he had a crush on Mike, but Noah Schnapp quickly responded.

After the storyline was introduced and explored head-on in season 4, Schnapp spoke candidly about his character's coming out journey. In an interview with Variety in July 2022, the actor said, "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."

Will's subtle coming out story in Stranger Things 4

Schnapp had previously told the press after Stranger Things 4 part 1 dropped that Will's sexuality was open to the interpretation of fans, which seemingly suggested we wouldn't be given a definitive answer. But he was obviously attempting not to spoil what was to come for fans. Even though Will hasn't had a big coming out moment, two key scenes in season 4 point to what Schnapp said.

First, Will has a conversation with Mike in the back of the van about his Mike's relationship with Eleven, but it's clear that Will has deeper feelings for his best friend. Will turns away from Mike with tears in his eyes and covers his mouth so Mike doesn't hear. Jonathan notices Will crying after having the conversation, which leads to the second moment later on with Jonathan telling his brother in so many words that he knows what's going on with him and he loves and supports him no matter what.

In the same interview with Variety, Schnapp mentioned that he felt Will has always had a crush on Mike, and that's been something the Duffer Brothers have been writing toward from the beginning. "They’ve been intentionally pulling that out over the past few seasons. Even in season 1, they hinted at that and slowly, slowly grew that storyline. I think for season 4, it was just me playing this character who loves his best friend but struggles with knowing if he’ll be accepted or not, and feeling like a mistake and like he doesn’t belong. Will has always felt like that."

The following year, Schnapp made an announcement of his own on TikTok after coming out for his character in July 2022. On Jan. 5, 2023, the then 18-year-old actor posted a casual lip synching video with a caption that doubled as him nonchalantly coming out as gay. Schnapp spoke with Variety again in August 2023 and explained that he wouldn't have been grave enough to do so without Will.

How Will's storyline helped Noah Schnapp accept himself, too

"Once I did fully embrace that Will was gay, it was just an exponential speed towards accepting it for myself. I would be in a completely different place if I didn’t have Will to portray, and to embrace and help me accept myself. I think if I never played that character, I probably would still be closeted," he told the magazine.

He even mused before filming for Stranger Things 5 even began that his approach to playing Will would be "different" since he's now much more comfortable in his own skin and confident with who he is: "I think the way I act in season 5, honestly, might be a little different. I will be fully aware of who I am. Knowing all of that about myself and being able to invest that in my character, I’m honestly just excited."

Schnapp also addressed his previous comments about the fan speculation toward Will's sexuality early on in the series run. He was defensive about questions regarding Will being gay and said it was "besides the point" of the show. In an interview with TIME in October 2025, Schnapp said, "When I was younger, I was obviously very scared of talking about it. They would pry and ask me, ‘Is he gay? Are you gay?’ I was 12, 13. I didn’t know what to say."

We'll get more details about Will's ultimate endgame and further commentary from Noah Schnapp after the volume 2 and volume 3 drops in December.

Watch Stranger Things only on Netflix.