NEW YORK –Noah Schnappwas at sleepaway camp when Season 1 of "Stranger Things" dropped on Netflix in July 2016.
"You don't have your phone and you're not part of the real world – you get three calls with your parents every summer," Schnapp, 21, recalls over a laid-back game of Jenga at a Union Square café. But gradually, "I remember my mom sending me emails being like, 'Noah, you have a fan page and you hit 10,000 followers!' I was like, what?!"
Nine years and nearly 24 million Instagram followers later, Schnapp is getting ready to say goodbye to Will Byers, the floppy-haired youngster he's inhabited for five seasons of sci-fi phenomenon "Stranger Things."
As we sit beneath shelves lined withMagic: The GatheringandWarhammer Quest, the young actor is oscillating between excitement and good-natured panic: After three new episodes on Christmas Day, "Stranger Things" ends with a supersized finale Dec. 31. And in the spring, Schnapp will graduate from University of Pennsylvania, where he studies film.
"I keep going through these cycles of, 'Oh, my life is over! I'm going to be so sad!'" Schnapp says. "But then it's like, 'Oh, anything could happen now!' If we had another season of 'Stranger Things,' it would just be so tired. This is the perfect time to end it, and it's a nice, fresh start for next year."
Noah Schnapp is learning to 'not derive self-worth' from social media
In last month'sVolume 1 cliffhanger, Will accessed mysterious, newfound powers to fight the Demogorgons and save his friends. It was a jaw-dropping revelation for the character, who has been dismissed as timid and weak ever since he was kidnapped and pulled into the Upside Down in Season 1.
Over the years, Schnapp was reluctant to voice his concerns about Will to the series' creators, Matt and Ross Duffer. But before Season 5, he worked up the confidence to give them a call.
"I was like, 'Guys, the show starts with him and then we just sidelined him after Season 3. Can we clear up why he was the first victim?'" Schnapp recalls. Volume 2, he teases, "explores Will's internal stakes and gets more into answering questions about why this all exists. The parallels between Will and Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) are a little like Harry Potter and Voldemort."
The remaining episodes will also delve into Will's romantic longing for his best friend, Mike (Finn Wolfhard). The character has gradually embraced his queer identity much in the same way as Schnapp, who came out in a TikTok video in 2023. But for years before then, Schnapp remembers being cornered about his sexuality by journalists.
"It was weird for interviewers to ask a 12-year-old kid, 'Do you think Will's gay? Do you relate to the character? And are you gay?'" he says. "It was so personal and overstepping."
Coming out can be challenging enough for any queer kid, as you worry about the impact it might have on your personal relationships.
"But then on top of that, it was like, 'Oh, but I also have a full-time job that's supporting my whole life,'" Schnapp recalls. "'How does this affect my future and my ability to work and be seen in roles that aren't just the queer kid?' It was weird to have not just the conversation with your friends and family, but to have to talk to my publicist and my manager, like, 'Is this OK if I come out publicly or do I have to hide it for the rest of my career?'"
Like most of his "Stranger Things" castmates, Schnapp has endured his share of invasive fans. During freshman year of college, he remembers students banging on his door and shouting his name at all times of night. Even before today's interview, a young woman waits outside the bathroom and corners him for a selfie, which he politely obliges.
"Everyone's very respectful for the most part, but people overstep a lot," Schnapp says. He used to spend hours responding to every message and searching his name on social media to see what people were saying. But he's since taken a step back from most platforms.
"I have on my vision board for 2026: 'Social media is not real life,'" Schnapp says. "You have to learn to set boundaries for your own mental health. It's not healthy to internalize every single opinion in the world every 10 seconds."
Even with the new season, friends will ask him whether he's seen fan edits and memes about Will's abilities. But he only watches what people send him.
"That validation is fickle, and it goes up and down," Schnapp says. "When you're high, they all want you, and when you're low, they don't. You have to learn not to derive your self-worth from these people that don't know you."
'Stranger Things' star says it's 'not easy' growing up in the spotlight
For fans that have been keeping "the door open three inches" since "Stranger Things" last released new episodes in 2022, you're in luck. Season 5 is arriving on Netflix starting Nov. 26, and the stars are out in Hollywood celebrating the acclaimed show's final season.Scroll through for photos from the LA premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre
on Nov. 6, 2025, starting with Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour.
" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Millie Bobby Brown 6 Theatres on Nov. 6, 2025, in Los Angeles." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Noah Schnapp" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Gaten Matarazzo" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Finn Wolfhard" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Scott Mackinlay Hahn and Winona Ryder" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Sadie Sink" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Matthew Modine" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Caleb McLaughlin" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jamie Campbell Bower" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jamie Campbell Bower" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Cara Buono" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Shawn Levy" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Gaten Matarazzo" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Beyoncé, Cynthia Erivo and Robert Pattinson in the best celebrity photos from November
For fans that have been keeping "the door open three inches" since "Stranger Things" last released new episodes in 2022, you're in luck. Season 5 is arriving on Netflix starting Nov. 26, and the stars are out in Hollywood celebrating the acclaimed show's final season.Scroll through for photos from the LA premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre
on Nov. 6, 2025, starting with Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour.
Schnapp looks up to his "Stranger Things" costarSadie Sink, who has "formed a healthy relationship" with fame. He also leans onMillie Bobby BrownandMaya Hawke, both of whom have similarly endured varying degrees ofpublic scrutinyandcuriosity.
"It's hard to grow up in the public eye," Schnapp says. "You don't know yourself, you haven't figured anything out, and now you're expected to know everything and have all the answers. I was constantly saying the wrong things or being embarrassed by not taking certain things seriously that I should've, and then that lives on forever. People grow and learn, and to do that publicly is not easy."
He agrees with Ariana Grande's assertion thatevery child actor should have mandatory therapy. For a while, he figured he was a "happy-go-lucky kid" and didn't need a therapist, although he's since gotten one.
"Through the years, it becomes like, 'No, this is an abnormal life and you need some type of support system outside of your parents,'" Schnapp says. "Growing up, I never understood why people were depressed or turned to drugs or had eating disorders. As you get older, you understand how the pressures of Hollywood can create that. I always tell my parents, 'I could never live in LA. I think I would get lost.'"
The actor is based in New York, where he consumes a healthy diet of pop culture: He cried nonstop after watching "All of Us Strangers," and is embarrassed to say that he only recently saw "Wicked" on Broadway. He would like to try screenwriting and directing one day, although his main goals for 2026 are to "take more acting classes and stay off this damn phone."
"I know I probably won't do something as big as 'Stranger Things' again," Schnapp acknowledges. "It's the biggest show in the world! I don't expect to keep competing with that level of viewership.
"But now, I have this opportunity to get smaller indie movies or be seen for a theater show, and I'm grateful that 'Stranger Things' has set me up financially to be OK for the rest of my life. What more could I ask for?"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:'Stranger Things' star Noah Schnapp likens Volume 2 to 'Harry Potter'
