Noah Schnapp of Stranger Things fame came out as gay on social media on Thursday afternoon.
The 18-year-old actor shared the news in a TikTok clip where he wore a gray hoodie while laying on a white pillow.
‘When I finally told my friends and family I was gay after being scared in the closet for 18 years and all they said was ‘we know,’ he wrote over the video.
He also said in the video: ‘I guess I’m more similar to Will Byers than I thought!’
His news: Noah Schnapp of Stranger Things fame has come out as gay on social media. On Thursday the actor shared the news in a TikTok clip where he wore a hoodie while laying on a pillow
In the video he is mouthing a woman’s voice as she says, ‘You know it never was that serious, it was never that serious, quite frankly we will never be that serious.’
His real life seems to be mimicking his reel life.
Back in July, Noah confirmed that his Stranger Things character Will Byers is gay and in love with his best friend Mike Wheeler, admitting he was previously careful in discussing the topic to avoid spoilers.
In a recent interview the actor opened up about growing up alongside his onscreen persona and the importance of his sexuality’s ‘slow arc’.
Speaking to Variety, the breakout star said: ‘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. But before, it was a slow arc.’
Casual: The 18-year-old actor shared the news in a TikTok clip where he wore a hoodie while laying on a pillow
His note: ‘When I finally told my friends and family I was gay after being scared in the closet for 18 years and all they said was ‘we know,’ he wrote over the video
Noah explained that not having Will ‘all of the sudden be gay’ was done ‘beautifully’, adding it was important to see the paced portrayal be important to viewers who saw their pasts reflected in his character.
‘They are writing this real character and this real journey and real struggle and they’re doing it so well,’ he said.
Noah also told the outlet that he did feel it would be a spoiler to confirm Will’s journey with discovering his sexuality.
Before the news: Back in July, Noah confirmed that his Stranger Things character Will Byers is gay and in love with his best friend Mike Wheeler, admitting he was previously careful in discussing the topic to avoid spoilers; (L-R) Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, Schnapp as Will Byers, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, and Eduardo Franco as Argyle in Stranger Things
Familiar faces: Cara Buono, Maya Hawke, Winona Ryder, Campbell Bower, Millie Bobby Brown, Matthew Modine, Caleb McLaughlin, Brett Gelman, Finn Wolfhard, Eduardo Franco, Sadie Sink, Noah Schnapp, Joseph Quinn, Gaten Matarazzo, Charlie Heaton, Priah Ferguson, David Harbour, Natalia Dyer and Joe Keery in May
‘I think it has been tricky. Years ago in Season 1, I didn’t know where the Duffers wanted to go with this character. So I was kind of figuring it out along with the audience,’ he said. ‘But now that I’ve spoken to them and seen the show, I know what they want to do with it.’
Noah added that Will’s ‘multifaceted trauma’ has been challenging in his growth as an actor, because the role he plays is affected by some many different things.
He told Variety: ‘…I really have to take into account, like, this isn’t just a single layer thing of he’s struggling with coming out…he was taken by the Demogorgon and then his friends, they never acknowledged him, and now he’s scared to come out and doesn’t know if they’ll accept him.’
Schnapp was just 11-years-old when he nabbed the role of Will Byers in Netflix’s hit sci-fi series, Stranger Things.
It premiered its very first season in 2017 and season five is currently in pre-production. Season four – which was divided into two parts – was released this past summer, with the first half’s premiere becoming the biggest streaming week of all time.
The series also stars Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Sadie Sink, Gaten Matarazzo, Joe Keery, David Harbour, Natalia Dyer, Winona Ryder, Charlie Heaton and Maya Hawke.
Schnapp recently started his freshman year at the University of Pennsylvania.
With a pal: The star seen with Mayan Lopez at the 2022 People’s Choice Awards held at the Barker Hangar on December 6
In December 2021, the actor shared with fans that he’d been accepted to the university in a video uploaded to social media.
It showed him opening an email from the University of Pennsylvania as his family waited around him in anticipation. They eventually burst into celebratory screams as they learned he’d been accepted.
Over the summer, Schnapp worked as a lifeguard part-time which was ‘kind of a ‘just for fun thing’ for the star.’
He told Flaunt: ‘I’ve kind of grown up with a normal life and normal friends and stuff outside of Stranger Things, so it’s kind of kept me grounded.’