If you search for the phrase “booked and busy,” you will likely find a picture of it Jonathan Bailey. The British actor rose to prominence in the role of Lord Anthony Bridgerton, whose love story takes center stage in the second season of the eponymous Netflix romance series. He won more hearts as Tim Laughlin, a McCarthy-era conservative turned radical queer leftist in the epic Showtime limited series other travelers, He will soon be playing the role of another eligible bachelor, Fierro, in John M. ChuOf two parts evil Adaptation – a part Billy recorded after Cho found clips of the actor singing online. “The fact that it was a YouTube video that got me the job is weird and unbelievable,” Billy says on this week's episode of the podcast. Little golden men (Listen below).
On top of all that, Billy was able to return to Toon for Season 3, Part 2 Bridgertonwhich begins broadcasting on Thursday, June 13 and is filmed in conjunction with Other travelers– Who bled directly evil. He remembers practicing choreography in the Ozdust Ballroom during lunch breaks travelers, Wearing his buttoned-up G-man glasses and a sharp haircut from the waist up – “And then that was Fame From the waist down. I have terrible videos that may or may not come out in about a hundred years, and I hope they die as soon as I die, because they're so embarrassing. But again, there's something poignant to them: “Tim, if he had been born 60 years later, might have played Fiero in the school production of 'Fiero.' evil. He would have loved shiny shoes.
Vanity gallery: As Tim On other travelers, I evolved from a conservative, religious congressional staffer in the 1950s to a radical gay man living in the 1980s. What was it like filming this character arc? I have to imagine that would be difficult to do.
Jonathan Bailey: It's been an incredible challenge. For Tim, he talks about the idea of religion and faith and what that does for you initially. And I think it seems to have prepared Tim to endure love against all odds. He never gives up on Hook (Matt Bomer). Hook becomes his living religion, the thing he believes in.
I was like, I want to see someone like me who is a fish out of water and has itchy skin. It's not like he was doe-eyed and unlucky; He's been fighting from the beginning. He doesn't understand why the world is the way it is. His emotions are the thing that drives him. It is about truth, transparency and honesty. And I think that comes from that conservative Catholic kind of upbringing. So this is the most beautiful endeavor he has ever done in his life, which is to find forgiveness and acceptance as well. But he never stops fighting. For this reason, to me he is an absolute icon.
Tim is prickly and struggles internally with his sexuality while also externally dealing with important moments in American history, from McCarthyism to the AIDS crisis. As a Brit, how much do you know about American history?
not enough [laughs]. It is not included in the curriculum. But I'm not sure it really existed in America either. For this reason we highlight areas of history that are not easily included. It's an experience to explore character throughout that period, but also the history of the queer experience – to offer me, as Johnny, catharsis. And to be in a very queer environment to tell that story. I enjoyed it, because there was a lot I needed to understand about the privilege I have now and the people who came before me. The fact that there are five gay actors leading the show is due to all the people who have come before. And I'm telling you, people have been loving gay actors for years. They couldn't say they were gay.
We're getting more and more queer stories and representations on screen, but these characters aren't always portrayed by real gay people. I suspect Other travelers It proves to make a big difference when you cast LGBT, queer, and LGBTQ+ actors in queer roles.
This one specifically explores the queer experience over 40 years. I think there was a GLAAD report last week that was kind of depressing, about how there's been a decline in the representation of gay or LGBTQ+ characters…. Tim, Hook, and all the characters in this world were born into a world where they had to fight. And if you have to watch or adapt or survive, if your first instinct is that it might not work out because of who I am, that's the difference between being a gay actor and not being a gay actor. It's the battle.
The show wouldn't work without the chemistry between you and Matt Bomer. How did you find that dynamic? Tim and Hawke's relationship has a sub-dynamic, and sometimes it changes. There is a power struggle. It's complex, nuanced, and always believable.
[laughs] Well, I mean, Matt Bomer is a supreme being, and incredibly beautiful and great. He's got such a wealth of experience. We met over Zoom to do a chemistry read, and then we met in a coffee shop for about a week, or even less actually, six days before we started shooting. For about an hour we said, you know, here's an opportunity. This is what we are really excited about. It's a lot of confidence and free fall. But that's the point of gay relationships: there's a lot of nuance, and the dynamic is very balanced because there's no sex, there's no… Oh, what was that? Women are from Venus and men are from Mars.
