The creators of Stranger Things, Matt and Ross Duffer, have shared that one specific episode from the recently released Volume 2 of the final season has a powerful emotional impact, bringing them to tears during filming and editing. This revelation came as fans digested the penultimate batch of episodes, which set the stage for the grand finale.
The emotional center of Volume 2 is found in Episode 6, titled “Escape from Camazotz.” Ross Duffer publicly stated that the performances in this episode “make us cry every time we watch it”. While other major storylines unfold, including the rescue of Holly and the final confrontation with Vecna, it is the culmination of Will Byers’ personal journey that delivered the season’s most heartfelt moment and proved to be a huge challenge for the creators to get right.
The Scene That Took the Longest to Write
The specific moment that resonated so deeply with the Duffer Brothers occurs in Episode 7, “The Bridge.” This is where Will Byers, played by Noah Schnapp, finally comes out to his mother, Joyce, and his closest friends. The creators have confirmed they spent more time writing this scene than any other in the final season, emphasizing the immense care they took with it.
Initially, the scene was written as a private conversation between Will and his mother, Joyce. However, the Duffers felt it wasn’t working.
“We worked on that for a while with just Joyce, and it never felt right. Once we involved the friends, it started to click more into place,” Matt Duffer explained.
The decision to have Will share this truth with his entire support system made the moment feel more complete and true to the character’s relationships built over the series’ entire run.
Why the Duffers Were Nervous
Bringing this long-awaited character moment to screen came with significant pressure. The Duffers were acutely aware of the scene’s importance to both the character and to actor Noah Schnapp.
“We were very nervous about it,” Matt Duffer admitted, noting they had been building toward this revelation for many seasons.
A major source of their anxiety was ensuring the scene felt authentic to Schnapp’s own understanding of Will. “Because so much of it is close to what he’s been through… It had to be truthful for him on two fronts,” Matt Duffer said, referring to both the character’s arc and the actor’s personal connection to the material. They felt great relief when the scene resonated with Schnapp during early readings.
An Emotional Day on Set
The filming of the coming out scene was an intense and emotional experience for everyone involved. The Duffers described a full day of shooting to capture reactions from the large cast present. They gave Schnapp control over how to proceed, asking if he wanted to start with the wider shots or dive straight into his close-up performance.
Schnapp chose to use a wider shot as a warm-up and then immediately film his close-up. What happened next surprised everyone.
“Most of what you see in the show was actually the first take,” Matt Duffer revealed. “It was just one of those amazing moments where he just lost himself. It was very real. It was very honest”.
The performance was so powerful and complete in that first take that it is primarily what appears in the final episode. Ross Duffer added, “We sobbed in the close-up”. However, after delivering this standout performance, Schnapp had to continue repeating his emotional lines all day so the other actors could film their reaction shots, a process that left him physically and emotionally drained by the end.
A Decade-Long Character Journey
The weight of the scene stems from its long history. Will’s struggle with his identity and his difference from his friends has been a subtle but consistent thread woven through all five seasons of Stranger Things, a story told over nearly a full decade. The show’s 1980s setting adds another layer, portraying a time far less accepting than today.
This careful, years-long build made the payoff in Volume 2 feel earned. The scene is not treated as a shocking reveal but as a quiet, vulnerable moment of honesty where Will is embraced by his family and friends. The supportive atmosphere the Duffers described on set, with the entire cast present to back up Schnapp even when off-camera, translated directly to the compassionate tone of the scene.
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Setting the Stage for the Finale
While Will’s personal victory provides an emotional high point, Volume 2 ends on a note of impending danger. The party successfully navigates the MAC-Z gate, but Eleven is left with a terrible choice proposed by her sister, Kali. To permanently stop the government program hunting her, Kali believes they must stay in the Upside Down when it is destroyed, vanishing along with it.
The final plan to defeat Vecna, dubbed “Operation Beanstalk,” involves letting Vecna draw the worlds closer, allowing Eleven to ambush his mind and create a path into the Abyss to rescue Holly and the other children. The ultimate goal is to collapse the Upside Down—revealed to be a wormhole bridge, not a full dimension—by destroying its power source of exotic matter.
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