In a new cover story for British GQ’s Heroes Issue, Jonathan Bailey discusses his career, including his role in Wicked: For Good, performing Shakespeare on the West End stage, and the awe of starring in Jurassic World: Rebirth.
Jonathan Bailey is speaking at the GQ Heroes conference, which is taking place at Soho Farmhouse in Oxfordshire from the 2 to 4 July 2025.
In the wide-ranging interview, Jonathan Bailey talks about Wicked: For Good, and how his character and the storyline evolve in the second chapter: “It’s darker, and I’ve got a sense it’s going to go there politically as well. Fiyero’s arc really kicks off and he literally is transformed by the end.”
“There really is lots of new stuff,” he also says. “When [Fiyero] leaves with Elphaba and they go to her lair where she’s staying – on stage you just accept that she’s living in a pit of dry ice, but in the film it’s really beautifully realised and thought out by the departments and Cynthia and me.”
Jonathan has just completed a starring role in Nicholas Hytner’s new production of Shakespeare classic Richard II at the Bridge Theatre in London.
He is a vocal advocate for theatre being accessible to everyone, saying that: “It can’t become an elitist, inaccessible thing. It’s amazing what filming live theatre has done, but nothing beats being in the room.”
Video: Behind the scenes of the photoshoot with Jonathan Bailey
Coming up, Jonathan is starring in the new Jurassic Park film, Jurassic World: Rebirth. “There’s a lot to be in awe of”, he says, about his role in the franchise. “The moment you wake up and you’re like, ‘Ugh,’ I think you have to get a big ol’ slap on the old botty bott bott.”
The Heroes Issue of British GQ is available via digital download and on newsstands on 10th June.
A new trailer for Wicked: For Good was released today by Universal Pictures. Starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, the second part of Jon M. Chu’s Wicked franchise is released in cinemas on 21 November.
The two-part film is an adaptation of the the multi-award winning stage show Wicked, which continues to play in London’s West End, on Broadway and internationally.
Apollo Victoria Theatre, London
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