Stranger Things Season 3 Actor Addresses if His Character is Gay

Warning: Stranger Things 3 Spoilers Ahead…

The new season of Stranger Things is finally here, and it saw the introduction of Hawkins’ first openly LGBTQ character, Robin, who is played by Maya Hawke. However, she’s not the only person whose sexuality is being discussed. People have long wondered if Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) is gay, something that was further hinted at this season when, during an argument, Mike tells Will, “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls.” While this could just mean that Will hasn’t hit that phase of puberty yet, fans certainly wouldn’t mind having a gay character in the party. In a recent interview with The Wrap, Schnapp addressed his character’s sexuality:

“All his friends have girlfriends and they’re out dating, and he just wants to have fun with his friends,” Schnapp explained. “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.”

In an older Instagram post, Schnapp also discussed Will’s sexuality:

“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.”

Stranger Things 3 stars Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers), David Harbour (Jim Hopper), Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven), Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler), Natalia Dyer (Nancy Wheeler), Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers), Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair), Noah Schnapp (Will Byers), Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson), Joe Keery (Steve Harrington), Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield), Cara Buono (Karen Wheeler), Dacre Montgomery (Billy Hargrove), Maya Hawke (Robin), and Priah Ferguson (Erica Sinclair).

Stranger Things 3 is now streaming on Netflix.