it seems the only reason he doesn't want max to hang out with lucas is because he is black
shareSure seemed that way. If it was anything other than that, I have no clue. He went straight for the lucas and ignored everyone else.
shareIt seemed to be the case.
shareIt seems that way, but we don't really know. If he kept catching her talking to Dustin maybe he would've had the same reaction. I'm sure we'll get a closer look at her family in season 3. Particularly the stepbrother and Gunnery Sergeant Dad, who seems to view himself as undisputed King of the Castle and isn't a terribly nice guy. Who calls their son's date a whore to his face? If dad is a racist then Billy probably is too. He may hate the old man, and not share his spit and polish attitude, but in most ways he is his father's son.
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Actors typically have conversations with the show's writers and producers about their character. To play them, you need to know who they are and what motivates them - even though viewers watching your performance may not. Certainly he never used any racial slurs. He just took an instant disliking to Lucas from afar, for reasons he's never made clear. And Billy isn't the subtle type. I think we would've heard at least one n-word out of him by now if that was really it.
We also saw him turn on the charm for Mrs. Wheeler. And later, while Max was getting ready for the dance, she and Billy made eye contact and you didn't see any actual anger in his expression. Why not? No anger or resentment. He was actually kind of hard to read there. So this character, whether he's bad to the bone or just acts that way, is clearly more complex than he first seems.
Other than the final upside-down Snow Ball scene, the Duffer brother did not want to give indications of where the characters would go next season. This will allow them great flexibility for next season.
As for being racist, we don't know what the charcter's motivations are yet, so it is hard to say. To say Billy is racist because he told his stepsister to stay away from a kid who is black assumes being black is the issue, and we should not assume that until it is confirmed.
What difference does it make? Is it because you want to see his character arc from racist to non-racist, or because you want to hate him even more because he and his father are lifelong racists?
Almost certainly yes.
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