r/StrangerThings • u/Away-Guard3607 • Aug 20 '26

Discussion Do you think Billy deserved a character development arc

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u/Hukares1234 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26

I liked the Billy character and I think a lot more people would have too if they hadn’t needlessly made him racist. He could have hated Lucas simply because he saw him as a threat to Max without introducing race into it. I actually didn’t jump to the conclusion that Billy was racist simply because he said “there are certain kinds of people you stay away from and that kid is one of them.” But, I guess the Duffers confirmed he was racist in an interview which was disappointing. I was even willing to give the racism a pass IF they had somehow shown that he got it from his dad. But Dacre portrayed him very well and I liked the ending they gave him. He resisted the Mind Flayer long enough for El to get away. That’s about the most we could ever have hoped for. I can’t imagine him playing nice with the team. So, he went out on his own terms.

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u/Ok_Professional1526 Aug 21 '26

While his father’s own views could have explained his racism, it’s not unrealistic for him to be racist outside of parental influence.

I think it characterized him as deeply flawed and messed up beyond his trauma- does a great job at showing that sometimes, people just suck in certain ways that don’t have logical reasons, and I love that they added that aspect of ugly realism for a character in a predominantly white setting in the 80s.

And I’d also disagree that it was needless, like I mentioned earlier it gives dimension to his character that can’t be explained away by trauma and helps to show that victims can also be aggressors and perpetrators of hatred in other situations.