‘Wicked’ star Jonathan Bailey says he’s open to ‘co-parent with a woman’ despite being openly gay

LONDON, ENGLAND: Jonathan Bailey is open to multiple possibilities regarding parenthood, including co-parenting with a woman, despite being openly gay. 

The 36-year-old actor, who plays Prince Fiyero in 'Wicked', recently sat down for a candid chat with British Vogue where he revealed that he hopes to embrace fatherhood one day. 

While the time currently might not be conducive enough to welcome a child into his life, the ‘Bridgerton’ star is keeping his hopes high.

Jonathan Bailey open to ‘co-parenting with a woman’

Jonathan Bailey opened up to British Vogue, sharing his aspirations to be a father one day. He said, “I might co-parent with a woman, but I’m thinking it will be with a man.”

Nevertheless, he is not rushing to become a father soon, owing to his busy schedule, per Page Six.

“It’s such a privilege for a man,” Bailey gushed before noting, “But I can’t bring children into my lifestyle now … I want to make sure I’m going to be present.”

Nevertheless, he is mentally preparing himself for the role by reading books on adoption.

Jonathan Bailey gets candid about his ‘private’ relationship

Jonathan Bailey, who gained astronomical success through his portrayal of Anthony Bridgerton in Netflix’s ‘Bridgerton’, shared last December that he was in a relationship with a “lovely” man, but chose not to reveal his identity. 

Last year, he told The Standard, “It’s not secret, but it’s private,” before adding, “Having a private life is, for me, completely critical.”

“I don’t know if I would be able to be as confident to speak out on other things if I felt that my whole life was up for grabs,” shared the actor. 

While he did not open up about his relationship during the recent interview, the British actor revealed that in his 20s, he did date a woman for two years, when he was still exploring his sexuality. While the relationship was fated to doom, Bailey revealed that the woman is still one of his closest friends. 

“It’s interesting with the binary, where you’re perceived to be either this or that,” Bailey reflected before adding, “That’s how I saw it at the time, but there are so many nuances to it.”

The actor shared that though he did not reveal his sexuality during the early days of his career, he came out to his friends and family members in his early 20s.

Bailey revealed, "I reached a point where I thought, 'F**k this'."

"I'd much prefer to hold my boyfriend's hand in public or be able to put my own face picture on Tinder and not be so concerned about that than getting a part," he added.

Speaking to GQ in 2022, as reported by People, he recalled the early days of his career when one of his co-stars was told by the higher-ups, “There's two things we don't want to know: if you're an alcoholic or if you're gay."

When Bailey heard about this, he chose to hide his sexuality for his career’s sake. 

Bailey explained, "All it takes is for one of those people in that position of power to say that, and it ripples through," before adding, "So, yeah, of course I thought that. Of course, I thought that in order to be happy I needed to be straight."

Thankfully, things changed, and the heartthrob openly came out as gay in 2018.