Noah Schnapp has opened up about his coming out journey, saying he would probably “still be closeted” if it weren’t for Stranger Things.
Noah Schnapp is best known for playing Will Byers in Netflix’s hit show Stranger Things, but little did he realize his real-life journey would mirror that of his character’s fictional one.
Throughout the four seasons of the show, fans have continually speculated whether or not Will is gay. And after confirming the character’s sexuality, Schnapp himself came out in a TikTok video earlier this year, saying: “I guess I’m more similar to Will than I thought.”
While the reaction to the news has been overwhelmingly positive, Schnapp has opened up about how he previously pushed this side of himself down, and how playing the character helped him to embrace his sexuality.
Noah Schnapp would probably “still be closeted” without Stranger Things
In a conversation with Variety, Noah Schnapp explained that by confirming his Stranger Things character is gay, he was able to accept it himself.
“Once I did fully embrace that Will was gay, it was just an exponential speed towards accepting it for myself,” he told the outlet.
“I would be in a completely different place if I didn’t have Will to portray, and to embrace and help me accept myself. I think if I never played that character, I probably would still be closeted.”
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As is often the case with coming out, his journey wasn’t a straightforward one – when fans started discussing Schnapp’s own sexuality, it left him feeling apprehensive.
“I think it made me hold it down deeper,” he said. “Because it was kind of being poked and prodded out of me in such a public way.”
Although he was surrounded by supportive friends and family, he added: “It was just, I didn’t think it was a real thing. It was just the idea of being gay. I was like, ‘I’m straight.’ I just rejected that idea for so long.”
However, the positive reaction to Will being confirmed as gay helped him, with Schnapp seeing that “there was not one bad thing about him being gay. I was like, if he has all this support, then why should I worry about anything?”
With Stranger Things Season 5 in the works and a bright future ahead, Schnapp is looking forward to what’s to come. As for coming out, he exclaimed: “I would not want to have done it any other way.”
You can read more about Stranger Things Season 5 here, and check out our other Netflix hubs below:
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