“The Bridgertons”: Jonathan Bailey confessed that he felt pressure to hide his sexuality

The popularity of the English actor Jonathan Bailey has grown like foam thanks to his role as Anthony in the successful Netflix series “The Bridgertons”. His character will be the protagonist of the second season that will be released next March 25th. Bailey came out as gay But early in his career, he was led to believe that hiding his sexual orientation would help him prosper as an actor.

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The interpreter has told in an interview for GQ magazine that hid his homosexuality because he felt pressured by the industry, as he feared his career would suffer if he revealed it. The 33-year-old Briton recalled that, while filming one of the series in which he participated years ago, one of his actor friends told him a phrase that was etched in his mind: “There are two things we don’t want to know : if you are an alcoholic or if you are gay”. Although he now tells it as an anecdote, such words were the main reason he hid his sexuality from him in the early years of his career.

“The only thing you need to believe that something like that is true is for someone in a position of power to tell you,” he said in the interview. “Then, of course, I assumed that I should listen to him. I thought that, to be happy, he needed to be heterosexual, ”emphasized the actor, who hid this fact from his family and friends until he was just over 20 years old.

After a while, and although he still had many doubts, he had to reflect deeply on what true happiness was for him. He “got to a point where I thought: “I’d rather hold my boyfriend’s hand in public or be able to put a picture of my face on Tinder, and not be worried about that than getting a part.” pointed out.

Bailey told GQ that he hid his homosexuality because he felt pressured by the industry. Photo: QG magazine

Heterosexual in “The Bridgertons”

about his role as Anthony Bridgerton, mentioned that the plot of the series made him “think a lot about love”. “I have had to transfer my life experiences to work. We never see past the men in period dramas. Nor why they are so toxic and elusive, “said the actor.

Although this character identifies as straight, Bailey has argued in previous interviews that gay men should be able to play all kinds of roles on screen. “I think that It shouldn’t matter at all what character we play, but, of course, there is a narrative that always repeats itself: openly gay men never play roles of openly heterosexual characters, less if they are protagonists, “he told the Digital Spy website.

“There’s a reason gay characters are so interesting. Because, just like the women in ‘The Bridgertons’, they suffer many obstacles and have personal development. That straight men have played iconic gay roles and are praised for it is fantastic. But wouldn’t it be great to see gay men interpret their own experiences, ”he also asserted in that interview.

Bailey on his role in Bridgerton: “Gay men should be able to play all kinds of roles on screen.” Photo: Composition / Netflix.

Jonathan then and now

Jonathan Bailey was born on April 25, 1988. He decided to be an actor at the age of 5 after seeing a theatrical production of the play Oliver. He won a 2019 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical for his portrayal of Jamie in the 2018 West End revival of “Company.” He was cast as the young Leonardo da Vinci in the series “Leonardo” and then acted in the BBC comedy “Me and Mrs. Jones”, although it was not until 2020 that he rose to fame for his portrayal of Anthony in “The Bridgertons”.

Bailey is not only busy with the promotion of the second season of “The Bridgertons”, but has just started another professional project. The British is one of the protagonists of a new version of the play “cock”which premiered in London on March 5. He and Taron Egerton give life to a couple of men whose relationship is going through a crisis after several years together and one of them ends up falling in love with a woman.