Jonathan Bailey, 37, has been named People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive for 2025, taking over the title from last year’s winner, John Krasinski.
While People’s past choices have often included Hollywood’s traditional heartthrobs—Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Hugh Jackman, and David Beckham—the magazine has in recent years taken a broader view of what defines “sexy.” Recent honorees have included John Legend, Blake Shelton, and Krasinski.
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Before the announcement, betting favorites included Pedro Pascal and Jeremy Allen White.
Bailey first rose to prominence as Lord Anthony Bridgerton in Netflix’s hit Bridgerton, which made him one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actors. He went on to star in Fellow Travelers, earning critical acclaim and award nominations, before cementing his pop culture status as Fiyero in Wicked.
In his personal life, Bailey came out publicly in 2018, speaking candidly about his sexuality while keeping his relationships private. He is the first openly gay man to hold the title of Sexiest Man Alive. “My private life isn’t secret—it’s just private,” he has said, rarely commenting on rumors about his romantic partners.
In a revealing interview with Attitude magazine following his Bridgerton breakthrough, Bailey spoke about the challenges of coming out in the entertainment industry. “The most conservative conversations about my sexuality came from gay men in the industry,” he said. “They’d say things like, ‘Oh, you can’t come out,’ or, ‘You don’t really need to—because if you do, you’ll have to…’ It was a time when I was already at peace with my sexuality and not hiding it, but I’d never really discussed it publicly. There’s a sense of shame that I think still exists among gay men in the industry. They want you to be gay—but not too gay.”
Last summer, Bailey hinted in a lighthearted interview that he was single, after revealing in 2023 that he was in a relationship with what he described as “a wonderful man.” Interviewers often describe him as embodying the modern leading man—charismatic, thoughtful, and deeply aware of the politics of representation.