It’s not every day that you sit down with a celebrity who treats his partnerships as a priority, rather than a mere brand endorsement. But a few minutes into speaking with Chase Stokes, it quickly became clear that his involvement with Zenni Optical and Bring Change to Mind wasn’t simply about lending his name to a campaign. There was a sincerity to the way he spoke about the initiative, one that made it clear this was a cause he genuinely cared about, not just another obligation on his calendar.
On October 7, the Outer Banks star joined Zenni Optical and the nonprofit Bring Change to Mind (BC2M) at Manhattan Early College School for Advertising (MECA) in New York City, where students received prescription glasses and participated in conversations about mental health, confidence, and overall well-being.
The initiative, held ahead of World Sight Day and World Mental Health Day, provided vision screenings for nearly 300 students, with more than half needing new or updated prescriptions. For some, the event marked an opportunity to receive their first pair of glasses.
It’s easy to overlook something as fundamental as being able to see clearly, particularly when discussing mental health. But for a teenager struggling in the classroom, having difficulty reading or feeling self-conscious about their appearance, access to proper eyewear can make a meaningful difference.
Stokes understands that connection firsthand.
“I know for me, when I got glasses, it opened my eyes to reading in a way that I used to strain,” Stokes told me, explaining that reading novels had once been difficult for him.
Looking back at his own teenage years, the actor wondered whether having better access to eyewear might have changed his academic experience.
“I definitely didn’t thrive in high school, academically,” he admitted. “Part of that was my level of effort, but also, like, I look back on that, and if I would have had access to the appropriate eyewear to be able to see things better, to be a little more attentive, would that have changed my experience? Probably.”
His experience illustrates how much of a difference the right support can make, something that extends beyond physical health to the emotional challenges young people often struggle to understand or articulate.
When I asked what he would tell his 15-year-old self, who was beginning to navigate anxiety and the uncertainty of adolescence, his answer wasn’t about having all the solutions.
“I think it would have been a beautiful thing to have somebody come up to me and say, hey, we might not have all the answers, but we can help you figure some things out,” he told me.
For Stokes, that willingness to acknowledge uncertainty is central to his work with Bring Change to Mind, an organization co-founded by actress Glenn Close that encourages young people to challenge the stigma surrounding mental health.
“Just because you don’t understand it doesn’t mean that it’s wrong,” he said, reflecting on what he wishes he had understood at that age. “It just means that it’s one foot in front of the other.”
Our conversation eventually moved beyond the event itself and into something more personal: the experience of struggling with anxiety while wondering whether everyone else feels the same way.
There’s something isolating about realizing that an experience you’ve always assumed was universal isn’t necessarily shared by the people around you.
Stokes recognized that feeling immediately.
“And then it presents this idea of, oh, am I alone in that?” he said, reflecting on the discomfort of realizing others might not share the same internal experiences. “Or like, oh, you just made me feel small because I have this sensation or this gut feeling that is happening to me that I thought I was sharing with other people.”
It’s precisely why he believes young people need spaces where they can talk openly, ask questions, and discover that their experiences don’t have to be navigated alone.
And while conversations about mental health have become increasingly common, Stokes believes awareness is only the beginning.
“Starting a conversation builds awareness, awareness builds action,” he explained. “Do I think that we have made leaps and bounds? To an extent, yeah, but do I think we still have a long way to go? Absolutely.”
That distinction between awareness and action is particularly meaningful in the context of his partnership with Zenni. Rather than simply encouraging young people to prioritize their well-being, the initiative provided tangible resources, from vision exams and prescription glasses to student-led mental health programming.
For Stokes, taking action also means challenging the expectations placed on men to remain strong, independent, and emotionally guarded.
“I think the most masculine thing you can do is be open and be vulnerable,” he told me.
He pushed back against the idea that men should simply suppress their emotions or handle every challenge privately.
“I think the most masculine thing you can do is ask for help,” he added.
When I asked what taking care of his mental health looks like away from the cameras, Stokes emphasized consistency, therapy, movement, supportive relationships, and maintaining a routine.
“One of the things for me that helps is routine,” he explained. “If I can find a really good routine, it’s usually the most beneficial for myself.”
That understanding didn’t come overnight. Stokes described himself as someone who often learns through mistakes, acknowledging that recognizing when something isn’t working can be an uncomfortable but necessary part of personal growth.
“Failure is not the end of the road, it’s just the opening to a new path,” he said.
It’s a perspective that extends beyond mental health and into his career, particularly as he navigates life after Outer Banks, the Netflix series that made him an international star.
For seven years, Stokes portrayed John B., a teenager whose determination to uncover the truth about his father and pursue an extraordinary treasure hunt frequently pushed him beyond what others believed was possible.
When I asked what he would carry with him from the character, Stokes pointed to that relentless willingness to pursue something meaningful, even when the odds seem impossible.
“If there’s something that you’re passionate about, whether others believe in it or others don’t believe in it, if you feel it in your gut to be your life mission to go after something, go after it,” he told me.
“The things that feel impossible in life are very much possible.”
But success hasn’t eliminated the uncertainty that comes with being an artist.
Despite the global popularity of Outer Banks, Stokes acknowledged that imposter syndrome remains part of his professional life.
“I think I’ve created a healthier relationship with it,” he explained. “Just because I was a part of something that had a level of international and global success doesn’t mean that the next project is going to be a guaranteed win.”
Rather than trying to eliminate those feelings entirely, he’s learning to coexist with them.
“It’s kind of like a roommate,” he joked. “They don’t always do their dishes, but they pay the rent on time.”
His comparison brought a moment of humor to an otherwise serious conversation, revealing how he’s learned to make room for uncertainty without letting it define him.
As he closes the chapter on Outer Banks, Stokes is also rediscovering what excites him creatively.
He admitted that toward the end of the series, he felt a need to reconnect with his artistic identity after spending so many years portraying the same character.
“I left that show really feeling the need to rediscover that creative, sort of identity,” he said.
Fortunately, he described his current work as among the most creatively fulfilling of his career.
“I feel like a kid in a candy store right now,” he told me. “Like, I’m just existing, and it’s a really cool feeling.”
But even as he looks ahead to the next chapter of his career, Stokes remains invested in what his work beyond the screen can mean to others.
When I asked what he hoped the students would remember about their experience a decade from now, his answer returned to the same message that had surfaced repeatedly throughout our conversation: asking for help is not a weakness.
“Nobody gets to the place in life that they’re the most satisfied or happy with without help or those that are championing them along the way,” he said.
He hoped that something as simple as getting an eye exam could give students the confidence to seek support in other areas of their lives, whether that meant speaking up about their mental health or pursuing an opportunity they once thought was beyond their reach.
“And 10 years down the line, it was them knocking down doors that maybe they didn’t think they needed to even knock on in the first place,” he said.
For Stokes, the goal isn’t simply to be remembered for the characters he’s played or the campaigns he’s supported. When I asked what he hoped people would ultimately take away from his career, he resisted defining that legacy himself.
“I’d hope that my work has defined it,” he said.
For the students who walked away with new glasses, the immediate impact was something tangible: the ability to see the world more clearly.
But perhaps the more lasting lesson was that asking for help, whether for your vision, your mental health, or your future, can be the beginning of seeing yourself differently, too.
