Back in its third season, it sensitively handled Robin’s (Maya Hawke) coming out when she revealed to Steve (Joe Keery) that she’s a lesbian. To Stranger Things‘ credit, it’s not as if the show is avoiding saying the word gay altogether. And that’s OK not to label things.” In agreement, Schnapp added, “He’s just confused and growing up. So many kids out there don’t know, and that’s OK. “I think what’s really nice about Will’s character is that he’s just a human being going through his own personal demons and issues. “Can I just say, it’s 2022 and we don’t have to label things,” Brown opined. There’s also a brief scene where Will reacts coldly to affection from a girl his age, not to mention his continued jealousy over the fact that Mike gives all his attention to Eleven. In season four, Stranger Things appears to be fanning those flames of speculation, like the fact that, for a school presentation on heroes, Will chooses to discuss Alan Turing, the game-changing mathematician who was persecuted in the ’50s for being gay. Theories about Will’s sexuality started bubbling up seasons back when it became clear that he was jealous of the time his bestie Mike (Finn Wolfhard) and Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) were spending together. Sure, you could chalk that up to the fact that he saw some dark, horrifying stuff in that alternate dimension-we’re talking traumatize-you-for-life, Demagorgon stuff-but some viewers have wondered if maybe he’s struggling with something else: The fact that he might be gay. And, no, we’re not talking about his bowl cut.Įver since he was rescued from the Upside Down at the end of the first season, Will has had some trouble adjusting to life right-side-up, tepidly reintegrating into his group of friends. With the initial episodes of the fourth, super-sized season hitting the streamer this past weekend, none other than sweet, innocent Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) has become the focus of a lot of fan speculation and online debate over something about the character that has (thus far) gone unspoken.
But even after all this time, it’s clear the series hasn’t lost its ability to be at the center of the cultural conversation. It’s been nearly three years since we last visited Hawkins, Indiana, the home of Netflix’s nostalgic sci-fi smash, Stranger Things.