Noah Schnapp to Make Stage Debut in London World Premiere of Affluenza
Noah Schnapp, best known for playing Will Byers in Stranger Things, will make his professional stage debut in the world premiere of Affluenza at Riverside Studios in Hammersmith this autumn. The production runs from 26 September to 21 November 2026, with a press night — the performance critics are invited to review — set for 5 October (What's On Stage).
Schnapp said in a statement: "I am so excited to make my stage debut in London with Affluenza" (People). His casting was first announced on 13 August 2026.
The full cast, confirmed on 20 August, includes Juliet Cowan, Wallis Currie-Wood, Janette Manrara and Rupert Young alongside Schnapp (What's On Stage). Manrara is widely recognised from BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing; Young's credits include the West End production of Dear Evan Hansen; Cowan has appeared across British television including The End of the F***ing World; and Currie-Wood has screen credits including The Strain.
Affluenza is written and directed by Andy Sandberg, a Tony Award winner — Broadway's highest honour (Variety). The play is set against the ultra-wealthy social haven of the Hamptons, the Long Island enclave known for its summer colony of New York's richest residents, and explores themes of moral accountability, family legacy and the American justice system (What's On Stage).
The creative team is substantial. Set design is by Charlie Corcoran, with Hannah Schmidt on costumes and as associate set designer. Jack Weir handles lighting, Emily Drohan sound, and Nicholas Hockaday casting. Cecilie Fray is associate director, Florence Carr-Jones assistant director, and DEM Productions serves as general manager — the company responsible for the day-to-day running of the show. Jack Boissieux and Dan Steward of JBPM are production managers, and Scott Elmegreen contributes additional material (What's On Stage).
Affluenza was announced as part of a five-play season at Riverside Studios, the arts venue on the banks of the Thames in Hammersmith, west London (What's On Stage).
For Schnapp, the role marks a shift from screen to stage — and from Netflix's supernatural small-town Indiana to a drama about wealth, consequence and the law. A nearly eight-week run in a 200-seat studio venue is a different kind of exposure for an actor whose previous audience numbered in the tens of millions. Whether that audience follows him into a theatre in Hammersmith is one of the questions a production like this raises. The answer will come on press night, 5 October, and in the box-office figures that follow.
