Jonathan Bailey Opened Up About His Sexuality And Dating A Woman In His Early 20s

Jonathan Bailey spoke about his sexuality in a new interview with British Vogue.

The Wicked star, who has been acting since he was a child, previously said that he felt pressured early in his career to hide being gay. He ultimately came out to friends and family in his early 20s.

Jonathan has previously expressed that he had an idea that he was gay from the age of 11, but struggled with identifying as such given the lack of positive representation. In this new interview, he reflected on coming to the realization more gradually.

“It’s interesting with the binary,” he told Vogue, “where you’re perceived to be either this or that. That’s how I saw it at the time, but there are so many nuances to it." After all, Jonathan said that he was in a relationship with a woman for two years in his early 20s: "My experience of that relationship was not that I was in the shadows. She remains one of my best friends.”

"I think other people understood my sexuality before I was even aware of it,” he continued, noting that his parents encouraged him to take up ballet after a childhood of dressing up, singing, and dancing.

He further said that when he was at a childhood sleepover, he asked his friends one potent question. "'Guys, guys, who else thinks they’re gay? Do you? I do. I do.’ It was a conversation I really, really wanted to have, to see if everyone else was on the same page,” he said. “But everyone went quiet.”

What's more, Jonathan said he faced hostility at school — even from teachers: "I was having trouble with my work and [the teacher] said, ‘Well, if you weren’t so busy being a fairy you’d understand.’”

While he declined to comment on his current relationship status, Jonathan said that he had previously been "heckled in London" for holding hands with a boyfriend — but that nowadays "that kind of behavior is now outweighed by the smiles you get."

The Bridgerton star further said that he hopes to have children once his schedule is less busy, explaining, "I want to make sure I’m going to be present. I’m reading books on adoption. I might coparent with a woman, but I’m thinking it will be with a man."

You can read the full interview here.