Jonathan Bailey is looking beyond “Wicked.”
The actor, 36, revealed he’s hoping to become a dad when his busy life settles. Talking to British Vogue in an interview published on Thursday, Dec. 12, Bailey, who stars as Prince Fiyero in the hit film alongside Ariana Grande (Galinda) and Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba), discussed his desire to grow his family.
He also shared that he started preparing for the possibility of adopting a child — and is open to co-parenting with a man or a woman.
When asked if he wanted children someday, Bailey responded, “Yes, it’s such a privilege for a man,” adding, “but I can’t bring children into my lifestyle now” due to his hectic work schedule.
The actor — who starred as the heartthrob Lord Anthony Bridgerton in Netflix’s “Bridgerton” for the past four seasons — said he wants “to make sure I’m going to be present” before pulling the trigger on kids.
For now, “I’m reading books on adoption,” he told the outlet before dropping the forward-thinking co-parenting bombshell.
“I might co-parent with a woman, but I’m thinking it will be with a man,” Bailey added.
The star also addressed his sexuality in the interview, revealing that in his early 20s, he dated a woman for two years — but also came out as gay to his family and some close friends.
“It’s interesting with the binary,” he shared, “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,” Bailey continued.
The actor briefly talked about his dating life, stating, “I’ve always been a confident hand-holder in relationships. I had a boyfriend who wasn’t experienced at holding hands in public. We got heckled in London. But that kind of behaviour is now outweighed by the smiles you get.”
However, when it came to his current relationship status, Bailey told the outlet he’s “not discussing that.”
Bailey has had one success after the next, most recently with the musical prequel “Wicked,” which has slayed at the box office since its debut on Nov. 22.
He also made some lifelong friends out of it, including Grande, who shared the sentiment that they clicked immediately.
“I feel like we were both very theater children in the room,” Grande told People last month. “I mean incessant,” Bailey agreed.
“And we were very giggly together. That was the tough thing with us. We were the giggliest pair,” Grande explained. “It carbonated our chemistry.”
“It gave us fizz,” Bailey interjected.
Grande shared that while their characters fall for each other in the movie, she and Bailey were “falling for each other as friends in real life, too. That was such a beautiful part of it. We had the most beautiful time.”
