Early Stranger Things outline seems to confirm Will Byers’ sexuality

With Mike, Dustin and Lucas so wrapped up in their girlfriends and relationship woes during the third season of Stranger Things, Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) was frequently the odd one out — a fact that became increasingly clear the more he attempted to draw his friends back into old routines of playing Dungeons and Dragons and hanging out by themselves.

One of Mike’s responses to these attempts has left viewers theorizing about Will’s sexuality. “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls,” Mike tells his friend after an argument, during which Will accuses the others of being too concerned with romance. And while the comment could easily have just been a childish rebuke from an annoyed Mike, Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers’ original notes for the series seem to confirm that there was more meaning behind Mike’s words.

Some setup: when they were shopping the series around, the Duffers gave out series bibles to different networks. These documents outlined what they thought were the key aspects of the series. As with any story, changes were made over time, though much of the foundation stuck. The description of Will is pretty spot-on, and includes a few things that have thus far only been hinted at. According to ScreenRant, a section that outlines Will’s character reads:

"WILL BYERS, twelve, is a sweet, sensitive kid with sexual identity issues. He only recently came to the realization that he does not fit into the 1980s definition of ‘normal.’ His innocent choices, such as his colorful clothes, prove a constant source of bullying.Like Mike, Will escapes through fantasy gaming, where he can be himself, uninhibited. He has a close relationship with his mother, Joyce. His brother, Jonathan, helps raise him in lieu of their father, who abandoned them four years ago."

This, along with Mike’s statement and Joyce’s season one comments about Will being made fun of for his sexuality, all seem to support the theory that Will is gay. This would make him the second LGBTQ+ character in the Stranger Things gang, along with Steve’s fellow ice cream scooper, Robin.

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Robin came into the series already understanding her own sexuality — the scene where she reveals it to Steve is a highlight of the third season. Will may yet have some growing to do before he becomes as comfortable with it. On a show about growing up, we will surely see that part of his journey.

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