Will Byers’ emotional monologue in Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 7, The Bridge, has become one of the most discussed moments of the final season, and Noah Schnapp revealed just how demanding the scene was to film.
The episode marks the moment Will comes out to his friends, a storyline that had been building quietly across multiple seasons of Stranger Things. The episode aired to a mixed reception, with the scene quickly becoming a major talking point across social media.
Schnapp, who has played Will since the show’s debut in 2016, spoke to Variety about the process behind the monologue, confirming that the moment took far longer to shoot than viewers might expect.
Filming Will’s monologue took two 12-hour days
According to Schnapp, the coming-out scene was filmed across two separate 12-hour days, with the entire schedule focused almost exclusively on Will’s monologue.
“Oh my God, it was endless,” he said in regards to the number of takes. “It was like a 12-hour day of just that monologue. And we weren’t even done after the 12-hour day. We came back a week later to reshoot certain parts of the scene for another 12 hours.”
Schnapp explained that the extended shoot gave him the freedom to explore different emotional approaches without feeling locked into a single version of the performance. He said the scene included more dialogue than he had ever had before on the show, which led him to prepare for months in advance.
The actor also credited Maya Hawke with offering advice on memorization, explaining that she encouraged him to learn the lines early without attaching emotion, allowing the feelings to come naturally on set.
Schnapp said the rest of the cast, including Winona Ryder and the core group of younger actors, remained present throughout the long shoot despite not always being on camera.
“They could have gone and sat in Video Village or hung out, but they all sat there in their spots through the whole day,” Schnapp said. “It was really special.”
Schnapp added that he had known Will’s coming-out moment was coming long before Episode 7 was written, frequently checking in with series creators Matt and Ross Duffer throughout filming. When he finally read the completed scene, he said he was moved to tears and felt it was “perfect,” adding that he had no notes and did not feel the need to workshop the script further.
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