Actor Jonathan Bailey has said he “really struggled” with fame after starring in the hit Netflix show Bridgerton.
The 36-year-old, who plays Antony Bridgerton in the Regency-era drama, said after the series first aired in 2020 he found dealing with stardom “quite hard-hitting”.
“I really struggled initially; I was overwhelmed by it,” he told British Vogue.
“But the people in your life have to adapt too. That’s the hardest thing: you see them struggling before you see it in yourself, someone pushing past your dear mum and dad to get a picture.
“I’m really good now at saying no to photos.”
From playing a viscount in Bridgerton, Bailey has recently appeared as a prince, playing Fiyero in the film adaptation of Wicked, alongside Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.
Describing it as a “masterpiece”, the British actor said when he watched it he sobbed.
Away from the stage and screen, Bailey opened up about his future and how much he would like to have children.
“It’s such a privilege for a man,” the star, who is openly gay, told the magazine.
He said he is currently reading books on adoption but couldn’t bring children into his lifestyle now because of his busy schedule.
“I want to make sure I’m going to be present. I’m reading books on adoption. I might co-parent with a woman, but I’m thinking it will be with a man.”
On his sexuality, Bailey said he only came out to his close friends and family in his early 20s and had previously been in a relationship with a woman for two years.
“It’s interesting with the binary,” he said, “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.
“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.”
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Earlier this year, Oxfordshire-born Bailey set up The Shameless Fund – a charity that aims to use brand collaborations to raise money to support LGBTQ+ rights and organisations.
He said in a previous Vogue interview that he wanted to “raise money without asking people to actually donate and sponsor, [but rather] invite people to experience art and beautiful, inspiring, naughty and exciting collaborations”.
