A ‘Stranger Things’ Star Says That His Character’s Sexuality Is ‘Up For Interpretation’

NETFLIX

Will Byers doesn’t have much to do in Stranger Things 3, other than complain about not playing Dungeons & Dragons and say “he’s here” about the Mind Flayer a lot, but he’s the recipient of one of the season’s more striking lines.

In episode three of the Netflix series, “The Case of the Missing Lifeguard,” a fed-up Mike, who wants to swap spit with Eleven, yells at Will, “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls.” It’s led to a lot of online speculation that Will is gay… or maybe he’s just not interested in the opposite sex yet? It’s hard to tell, and according to actor Noah Schnapp, Will’s sexuality is still “up to interpretation.”

“All his friends have girlfriends and they’re out dating, and he just wants to have fun with his friends,” Schnapp told the Wrap. “You see in episode three, he just wants to play D&D in the basement, and now all of his friends have girlfriends and they are dating. And it’s kind of, when you hear Mike say that line, it’s really up to the audience to interpret it. I kind of just interpret it like he’s not ready to grow up and he doesn’t really want to move on to dating and relationships yet. He still wants to be a kid and play in the basement like he did in old times.”

Schnapp previously brought up Will’s sexuality on Instagram, where he wrote, “For me, Will being gay or not is besides the point. Stranger Things is a show about a bunch of kids who are outsiders and find each other because they have bullied in some way or are different. Does being sensitive, or a loner, or a teenager who likes photography, or a girl with red hair and big glasses, make you gay? I’m only 12, but I do know we all relate to being different.”

It doesn’t matter if Will’s gay, straight, or bi, as long as he’s happy. And that he gets a new haircut (preferably while vacationing in Hawaii).

(Via the Wrap)

×