Jonathan Bailey: How the First Openly Gay Sexiest Man Alive Rewrote the Rules

In 2025, PEOPLE magazine announced its Sexiest Man Alive. The winner was Jonathan Bailey — British actor, openly gay.

Since the title was created in 1985, it had never been given to an openly gay man.

From Bridgerton to Wicked

Jonathan Bailey's 2025 swept through Hollywood. He played Fiyero in Wicked: For Good alongside Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. The same year he starred in Jurassic World: Rebirth. Both films delivered strong results at the global box office, making him one of the year's highest-grossing leading men.

But what people truly remember is not the box office numbers. It is the attitude he showed in every public appearance: warm, confident, unwilling to sidestep his own identity.

Coming Out as a Choice

Bailey came out publicly in a 2020 interview. He said he had been advised early in his career not to come out, because it might limit the types of roles he could get.

He ultimately chose to come out. Not because it was easy, but because he believed the cost of hiding himself was higher. In a GQ interview he said: you cannot hide yourself and expect your performance to be authentic at the same time.

What You Don't Know: The Cultural Weight of Sexiest Man Alive

PEOPLE's Sexiest Man Alive is not just an entertainment title. It is mainstream culture's annual definition of sexiness. Past winners over the last 40 years — from Mel Gibson to Brad Pitt to Chris Hemsworth — have been essentially the same template: straight, white, muscular, Hollywood.

Jonathan Bailey broke at least two dimensions of that template: he is an openly gay man, and his appeal is not built on the traditional tough-guy image. His attractiveness comes from something softer: a blend of intelligence, humour, vulnerability, and confidence.

PEOPLE choosing him is mainstream culture acknowledging one thing: sexiness no longer comes in only one shape.

A Portrait of a Gay-Friendly Era

Bailey's win is not an endpoint. It is a signal: when an openly gay actor can simultaneously headline two major films, win the world's most coveted cover title, and nobody finds anything wrong with that, the attitude of this era has changed.

Not perfect. There is still a long road ahead. But the direction is right.

Jonathan Bailey proved through his existence: you do not need to hide any part of yourself to become the most desirable person in the world.