Stranger Things Ruined Will Byers’ Coming Out Scene With One Thing

Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 7, “The Bridge,” features a long-awaited scene involving Will Byers.

Since the show’s beginning, it has hinted at Will’s sexuality. The narrative explicitly suggests he is gay on Stranger Things Season 4 Episode 8, “Papa,” where Will talks about El to motivate Mike, even though he is secretly talking about himself.

However, Will does not come out to Mike, or any of his friends and family until “The Bridge.”

Will delivers a heart-wrenchingly beautiful monologue, and it’s almost everything anyone could ask for after nearly five seasons of waiting for this moment. Will is vulnerable with the people he loves in a terrifying moment that ultimately frees him.

However, the scene is not perfect. In fact, there is a critical factor that lessens the narrative impact of this scene: the audience that Will comes out to.

Will gathers everyone around him when he is ready to come out. Of course, this includes the people he loves, such as Joyce, Jonathan, Mike, and his friends. Unfortunately, it also includes people who barely know Will.

Will comes out to Joyce, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, El, Max, Robin, Jonathan, Nancy, Steve, Murray, Vickie, and Kali. Every relevant character to the final showdown with Vecna — except for Hopper — is present during this scene.

As a result, what should be a poignant coming-out scene falls flat. By adding almost every relevant character, Stranger Things makes a spectacle of Will’s sexuality.

It is very difficult for a teenage boy living in the Midwest in the 1980s to be out and proud as a gay person. It takes a lot of courage for Will to admit who he truly is.

Stranger Things has consistently depicted Will’s genuine fear of not being accepted by his loved ones upon discovering his sexuality, becoming a focal point in Season 5.

Considering these factors, it makes no sense why the show would depict Will’s coming-out scene as some grand performance, especially given how vulnerable he feels during his monologue.

Will choosing to gather his closest friends and family makes sense. They are the only ones who should be there. Robin’s presence would also be acceptable, given her critical role in Will’s arc. Otherwise, no one else has any business being there.

The emotional impact of Will’s words does not hit home upon realizing people he has never met before are present for his big moment.

A closeted teenager coming out while simultaneously admitting his fear of his loved ones not accepting him for who he is is not a dramatic show; it is an intimate and special moment.

Stranger Things ultimately fails to accomplish this intimacy. The show turns his sexuality into an exhibition the moment Will insists everyone should be there.

As Will speaks, the camera pans between Will, his friends, Joyce, and Jonathan. Will’s monologue ends with Jonathan and his friends reassuring Will in a group hug.

While these directorial decisions reestablish some of the intimacy, it becomes lost once the camera pans out to Steve, Murray, and Vickie. The touching moment between Will and his loved ones is gone.

If Stranger Things wanted to include the remaining characters, then Will could just come out to Joyce, Jonathan, and the party. 

After the group hug, the remaining characters could join the group, where Will finishes his speech by bravely stating he is no longer afraid of Vecna. This way, everyone present would be involved, but Will only comes out to the people who matter most.

Will Byers: I need to be there. And I’m ready. I’m ready to show him I’m not afraid anymore.

It is disappointing that Stranger Things ruins a scene that has been highly anticipated since the show’s early days by turning it into a spectacle.

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Stranger Things is airing on Netflix.

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