Hawkins is officially coming out of the closet.
As Netflix’s Stranger Things heads into its long-awaited fifth and final season, Noah Schnapp has confirmed that Will Byers’ sexuality will not just be background subtext but a major plot point driving the show’s emotional endgame.
The 20-year-old actor, who came out as gay in 2023 and later said his own journey mirrored Will’s, is leaning fully into the character’s long-speculated queerness after season four finally acknowledged Will’s feelings for best friend Mike Wheeler.
In new promo interviews, Schnapp teases that season five is “the gayest it’s ever been,” hinting that Will’s arc will move beyond coded glances and heartbreak in the backseat into something far more open, powerful and explicit.
For queer fans who clocked the rainbow-colored clues all the way back in season one, it sounds like the Duffer brothers are ready to pay off nearly a decade of storytelling.
Schnapp explains that seeing audiences embrace Will as a sensitive, anxious, different kind of hero helped him accept himself in real life, calling the response to the character a lesson in how being authentically queer can resonate far beyond LGBTQ+ viewers.
He describes Will’s journey as one about identity, belonging and courage, promising that the final chapter will give him space to step out from the shadows of both monsters and internalized fear.
At the world premiere of Stranger Things 5, cast members echoed that message, teasing more queer energy across the board and celebrating “gay” as a joyful word rather than a punchline, a far cry from the 1980s setting they’re playing in.
Season five will roll out in three parts, with Volume 1, Volume 2 and a New Year’s Eve finale turning the end of Stranger Things into a months-long event, giving fans plenty of time to obsess over every frame of Will’s story.
For many viewers, this isn’t just about shipping or fan-service; it’s about finally seeing a tender, complicated gay boy at the heart of one of the biggest genre shows on the planet, treated with the kind of narrative importance straight characters have always been given.
And with Schnapp himself now proudly out and vocal, the collision of his personal growth and Will’s long-teased coming-of-age could make this last trip to the Upside Down the most meaningful yet.
If Stranger Things really does go out on its gayest note ever, we’re more than ready to have our hearts shattered, healed and snatched right alongside Will Byers.
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