Will Byers in Stranger Things explained: Secret powers, age, relationships & more

Stranger Things began with the mysterious disappearance of one Will Byers. He’s been the tether between Hawkins and the other dimension since then and will have a massive part to play in Season 5.

While Will’s destiny post-kidnapping is uncertain – though it does seem his connection to the Upside Down is the key to something – his ability to sense the Upside Down‘s hive mind will either make him an unlikely hero or a prime target in Stranger Things Season 5.

Though Mike was positioned as the protagonist in Season 1 and Eleven has taken point as the group’s superpowered spearhead, Will is a crucial character.

The end of Stranger Things is almost here, but there’s plenty still to be wrapped up for the youngest Byers.

Who is Will Byers?

Will Byers is one of the main characters in Stranger Things. The whole story began with his disappearance.

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Will was born in 1971 to Joyce and Lonnie Byers. He’s Jonathan’s younger brother and counted on his support a lot while growing up in an unstable household.

He’s characterized as sensitive and caring, to the detriment of his relationship with his father in his childhood. Lonnie was absent and cruel, leading to Will seeking out his brother and mother for soothing rather than Lonnie.

Joyce eventually divorced Lonnie, and the remaining Byers stayed in Hawkins together – this new unit is where we met them in Season 1.

Much of Will’s arc concerns what happened to him in the first season, which he spent in the Upside Down. When he was rescued, he came back changed. His connection to the Upside Down and Mind Flayer also makes him a key element in understanding the threat against Hawkins.

He’s the quietest of the group and struggles massively with feelings he isn’t able to communicate until Season 4.

How old is he?

Will is around 14-15 in Season 4. He was born on March 22, 1971.

Will’s age through the show:

• 12 (Season 1)
• 13 (Season 2)
• 14 (Season 3)
• 14/15 (Season 4)

Fun fact: The Duffer Brothers, the creators of the show, admitted they actually forgot Will’s birthday. In Season 4, a rolling camera shows the date March 22, but none of the characters mention Will’s special day.

In an interview with Variety after the fact, the Duffer Brothers revealed they had to retroactively change Will’s birthday to May 22 when fans called them out on this error.

Season 1 changed Will’s life

Will’s life was changed when the Demogorgon abducted him on November 6, 1983.

After closing out a Dungeons & Dragons session in Mike Wheeler’s basement, Dungeon Master extraordinaire Will rode his bike home.

He crossed paths with the Demogorgon, which chased him to the Byers’ house. Unable to beat the monster, he vanished into an alternate dimension with the creature and was later declared missing.

It’s difficult to state just how much trauma this kid went through in Season 1. Viewers spent most of those early episodes watching Joyce go out of her mind with worry as Will’s friends investigated the Upside Down’s infringement on their plane.

While we watched Eleven and the others work to find him, Will was cold and alone in the Upside Down the entire time. We’re talking about a 12-year-old boy stuck in another dimension with murderous monsters.

Will isn’t a natural warrior, but he displays amazing resilience and bravery by attempting to contact Joyce while hiding from monsters in the Upside Down. The result of this was the static in the phone lines and that iconic Christmas lights sequence.

The consequences continued into Seasons 2-4

The end of Season 1 saw Will rescued thanks to Eleven’s help and Joyce’s determination. Things were looking up… side down (because there was a twist).

After visiting the bathroom during a cozy night in with Jonathan and Joyce, he retched up a sort of Demagorgon slug and sneakily disposed of it. The environment around him flickers momentarily to the Upside Down, showing he still was connected to it.

This was explored further in Season 2 when it was revealed the Mind Flayer was possessing Will, but the bathroom scene in general is a good indication of how Season 1 haunts Will for the rest of the series.

He has a key role to play in the fight against Vecna

Will lost many of his powers when the Mind Flayer was exorcised from his body at the end of Season 2, but he still can sense the Upside Down’s hive mind.

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He gets shivers in his neck which he described as like a rollercoaster drop, but colder. This was how he was able to sense the revived Mind Slayer. Distance plays a factor, as he experienced the shiver again in Season 4 Part 2 after returning to Hawkins.

He also has a strange ability to do with memories: he can feel and experience what creatures in the hive mind do. Will could sense Vecna‘s presence and before that, the Mind Flayer took advantage of this mental tether to spy on Hawkins through Will’s eyes.

Whether Vecna tries to use this for his own purposes or target Will specifically is yet to be seen. It could be a trump card for either side of the fight.

Is Will gay?

Will is gay. This was implied from early on in Stranger Things and was confirmed by actor Noah Schnapp in July 2022.

The seeds are there as early as Season 1, but subtext becomes plain text in Season 3 when Will is questioned about his lack of interest in girls (“It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!”), his reluctance to see Mike and Eleven growing closer, and his emotional reaction to growing up and facing change.

Season 4 goes further by having Jonathan notice how Will acts around Mike, his internal turmoil about being different in a very homophobic era, and subtly affirming Will by saying he’ll love him no matter what.

“Obviously, it was hinted at in season 1,” Schnapp told Variety. “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.”

Will and Mike’s relationship explained

Will and Mike are best friends, but Will harbors romantic love for him that he hasn’t expressed.

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Schnapp added, “It’s 100 percent clear that he is gay and he does love Mike. But before, it was a slow arc.”

Will has been jealous on a couple of occasions but it was usually obscured and could be rationalized as something else. The scene in the car in Season 4, however, is a sort of love confession. He couldn’t outright say what he felt, so he gave Mike his drawing and explained he’s the group’s heart instead.

After saying it, he turned away and tried to hide his sobs. Many people (wrongly) said Mike didn’t notice, but if you watch closely you can see Mike in the background of the shot subtly looking as Will tried to smother his cries and then turning away. Mike, a teenage boy, likely doesn’t know how to handle the situation without hurting Will.

Who plays Will Byers?

Noah Schnapp plays Will Byers in Stranger Things. The actor has also appeared in Hubie Halloween, Bridge of Spies, and The Angry Birds Movie.

Schnapp faced controversies in 2023 due to pro-Israel sentiments recorded in an Instagram story. This led to some people calling for a Stranger Things boycott in response. Schnapp then posted an apology video in January.

For more of the Stranger Things cast check out Gladiator 2, Fantastic Four: First Steps, or Enola Holmes 3.