Joining ‘Heartstopper’ was Jonathan Bailey’s idea — and here’s why

Jonathan Bailey’s upcoming appearance on Season 3 of Heartstopper already had fans swooning. Now, the Fellow Travelers star revealed joining the queer YA series was his own idea.

“Like so many people, I watched the first series and thought it was one of the biggest, most beautiful gifts to so many people, and I wish I had that growing up,” Bailey told Variety on the Met Gala red carpet.

So, determined to be a part of the magic, Bailey used a personal connection to angle for a role in the new season.

“I had a mutual friend who knows [executive producer Patrick Walters] and I just said, ‘If there’s anything I could do to help and be a part of that story,’” Bailey recalled.

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Bailey’s role on Heartstopper will play into his heartthrob status. He’ll be playing Jack Maddox, an Instagram-famous academic and Charlie’s celebrity crush. Last month, the series shared a sneak peek of Bailey on set, delivering one of Heartstopper’s trademark “hi”s.

Bailey continued singing the show’s praises, saying Heartstopper has “really has changed the way people could grow and communicate around who they are.”

“It’s not just for our community,” he said. “It’s for every person who is a member of a family who has a member of the LGBT+ community. It helps all of us.”

And when young queer fans express their gratitude for the representation Bailey provides, “it means the world,” he said.

Though Bailey wouldn’t reveal how many days he spent on the Heartstopper set, he did share that the day before the Met Gala, he caught his Heartstopper co-star Joe Locke’s final performance in Sweeney Todd on Broadway.

“It was amazing,” Bailey said of the show. “It was electric.”

Season 3 of Heartstopper releases this October on Netflix.

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