Wicked star Jonathan Bailey has announced a surprising break from his successful acting career to focus on LGBTQ+ charity work.
The 37-year-old, who most recently starred opposite Scarlett Johansson in Jurassic World Rebirth, launched The Shameless Fund, a charity that “aims to help members of the queer community across the world live freely and authentically”, in 2024.
Bailey said that although his acting career has been “amazing and mind-blowing”, with “everything happening in the world right now”, he’s decided to take a hiatus from Hollywood and “stop acting for a bit” over the next year.
“Over the next few months, I’ll be focusing on staffing and making sure we get all the right people in all the right places,” he told GQ.
“There’s this statistic: out of every £100 raised in the UK, only 1p goes to the LGBTQ+ community. You really have to dig to find solutions, and I genuinely think The Shameless Fund is exactly that.”
Fans gushed over Bailey wearing “slutty little glasses” during red carpet appearances on the recent Wicked and Jurassic World Rebirth press tour.
The small round frames have now become part of The Shameless Fund’s collaboration with the glasses brand Cubitts, for which they’ve released a pink pair of shades.
“The colour pink is so important,” Bailey said of the design. “It’s an expression of joy and happiness, and it’s incredibly flattering – a reason why I wore it so much during the Wicked press tour.”
Bailey’s Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo has been spotted in a pair of The Shameless Fund glasses ahead of their release. Johansson has also shown her support and posted a photo wearing the frames to Instagram.
Bailey’s Cubitts glasses – called Loomis – retail for £150 and are inspired by his Jurassic World Rebirth character Dr Loomis’ own frames.
Fifty per cent of the proceeds made from the glasses will be donated to The Shameless Fund so “every LGBTQ+ person can love freely, and thrive without the burdens of discrimination, oppression, or shame”.
Bailey rose to fame in the Regency romance series Bridgerton, before starring in the political miniseries Fellow Travelers, which won him an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
In 2024, he took on the role of Fiyero in the film adaptation of the musical fantasy Wicked, earning a nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Screen Actors Guild Awards.
The film’s second part Wicked: For Good is set to release in theatres on 21 November 2025.
