Stranger Things actor Caleb McLaughlin has called out the bigotry and racism that lives within the shows fan base.
The very popular series has a huge fan base of all ages and backgrounds. It follows a group of children having adventures in a fictional town called Hawkins, Indiana.
The main characters are Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, and Millie Bobby Brown.
In season one, they were all aged between 10 and 14. Over the years, as the show’s popularity grew, so did the love for the cast.
However, McLaughlin claims that he has not received as much love as his other co-stars and has opened up about his experience of racism.
During a Q&A, Caleb said:
“My very first Comic-Con, some people didn’t stand in my line because I was Black,”
“Some people told me: ‘Oh, I didn’t want to be in line because you were mean to Eleven,’ even now some people don’t follow me or don’t support me because I’m Black.”
“Sometimes overseas, you’ll feel the racism,”
“You’ll feel the bigotry, and sometimes it’s hard to talk about and for people to understand.”
“When I was younger, it definitely affected me a lot because — this is a deep conversation right now — you’re like: ‘Why am I the least favorite? The least amount of followers? I’m on the same show as everybody from Season 1,’”
This is heartbreaking.
