Noah Schnapp had a massive year in the wake of Stranger Things season four. The 18-year-old actor publicly came out on TikTok, mirroring Will Byers’ journey on the Duffer brothers’ supernatural horror show. Schnapp recently spoke to Variety about how his personal experiences will be affecting season five of the show.
“I think the way I act in season five, honestly, might be a little different,” Schnapp says. “I will be fully aware of who I am. Knowing all of that about myself and being able to invest that in my character, I’m honestly just excited.”
The Duffer brothers are also excited to have Schnapp back and have him take control of his narrative in significant ways. Ross Duffer said to Variety, “Will really takes center stage again in [season five]. This emotional arc for him is what we feel is going to hopefully tie the whole series together. Will is used to being the young one, the introverted one, the one that’s being protected. So part of his journey, it’s not just sexuality—it’s Will coming into his own as a young man.”
Stranger Things season five is scheduled to be released sometime in the summer of 2025. The show’s production is currently halted in solidarity with the writers’ strike.
This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the show being covered here wouldn’t exist.
