After the premiere of its second season on March 25, the Netflix romance period drama Bridgerton and its casts received a lot of attention from the audience.
Jonathan Bailey, who played Viscount Anthony Bridgerton, expressed his love for Kate Sharma in the final scenes of the show last season.
“I love you. I have loved you from the moment we raced each other in that park,” the eldest Bridgerton son told Kate. “I’ve loved you at every dance, on every walk, every time we’ve been together, and every time we’ve been apart.”
This has certainly sparked curiosity amongst the audience about the actor’s real-life partner. Here is what we know about Jonathan Bailey and his dating life.
Is Jonathan Bailey Gay?
Although he portrays a straight character in the periodic romance drama, the talented actor is gay in real life.
In a conversation with British GQ [via Popbuzz] in 2020, Bailey expressed that he has never hidden his sexuality but he also wasn’t always honest about being gay and even felt nervous holding his boyfriend’s hand in public.
He also talked about the complications of being gay in the entertainment industry as he always feared coming out would affect his career.
“‘There are two things we don’t want to know: if you’re an alcoholic, or if you’re gay,'” the British actor recollected being told this multiple times by his colleagues.
Bailey went on to explain the sense of shame in the gay community in the industry and that it took him a lot of courage to finally come to terms with his sexuality.
“I reached a point where I thought, [expletive] this,” he explained. “I’d much prefer to hold my boyfriend’s hand in public and not be so concerned about that than get apart.”
Who Is Jonathan Bailey’s Partner?
In contrast to his TV character who openly expressed his love interest, the 33-year-old actor seems pretty private about his love life.
Bailey frequently shares snaps from his travels and movie sets to keep in touch with his fans through his Instagram account, but he almost never brings up topics about who he is dating in the frame.
Despite his fans showing curiosity about his partner, Bailey manages to stay away from cameras pointing toward him in his private space and tries to avoid any kind of rumor surrounding his personal life.
Apart from various rumors, there is little to no evidence of his partner on his social media.
Is Jonathan Bailey Dating in Secret?
Despite him keeping his private moments off-camera, it has been reported on multiple occasions that he is in a relationship with someone named James Ellis.
The paparazzi recently spotted the pair on lunch dates in the summer of 2021.
Bailey and Ellis were first seen together at the 2019 Olivier Awards where they were caught sharing a celebration kiss as Bailey won an award for “Best Supporting Actor” for his work in the West End production of Company.
