Noah Schnapp Confirms Will Byers' Sexuality, But Fans Are Still Disappointed

Noah Schnapp has suddenly confirmed a big thing about his character that the majority of fans suspected to be true. Yes, Will Byers is gay and he is in love with Mike Wheeler, Schnapp has casually told Variety.

"Obviously, it was hinted at in Season 1: It was always kind of there, but you never really knew, is it just him growing up slower than his friends? Now that he's gotten older, they made it a very real, obvious thing. Now it's 100% clear that he is gay and he does love Mike," Schnapp said.

He admitted that it was a slow arc, but executed in a beautiful and relatable way, so it doesn't feel forced.

The reason for the actor playing coy before was that he was cautious about spoiling the entire thing, but it looks like that notorious van scene, where Will projects his feelings about Mike onto Eleven, has made everything crystal clear.

Fans, who have been parsing all four seasons to pick up hints at Will's sexuality and debating it eagerly on social media, suddenly give the official confirmation a quite lukewarm reception.

"Nice of him to confirm that, but I need to see it explicitly on screen. The Duffer Brothers need to show Will Byers' story some respect." – @co92s.

It would seem that many fans are still going to see Will Byers' story as queerbaiting unless his sexuality is actually confirmed in the show, and not just by the actor portraying him.

"Yeah, unless it's mentioned on screen it's basically the same thing as when they said Dumbledore is gay, after the fact. The actor doesn't need to say it, the character does." – @MyTweetsMyThots.

However, unlike people who bombarded Twitter threads with responses like "we already knew", some 'Stranger Things ' fans seem genuinely baffled by Schnapp's revelation. But for many people, Noah's confirmation just landed on top of the many hints at Will's sexuality that they have already garnered throughout the seasons: from Mike's harsh remarks that it's not his fault Will didn't like girls, and to Will Byers' oblique and tearful confession in the van.

Now, for the people to be truly happy for Noah Schnapp's character, it seems that his sexual identity has to be articulated in the show – something that might happen in season 5, which is set to be the final chapter of 'Stranger Things'.