Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey
Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey (Photo: Shutterstock)

Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey, who starred together in the award-winning, much-loved drama series Fellow Travelers, are not quite done promoting the show. 

The two men, who are both gay in real life, appear in a fabulous fashion shoot in the latest issue of Emmy Magazine. 

You can check out the whole magazine online, with the Bomer, 46, and Bailey, 36, interview on page 86.  

The photos were taken by esteemed photographer John Russo, who shared them on his Instagram. 

The headline pic has Bailey and Bomer on a sofa. Both are bare-footed. We’re unsure whether it’s a coincidence or not that one episode of Fellow Travelers had a toe-sucking scene in it!

The series followed a romance between two men that spanned four decades. From the Lavender Scare of the 1950s to the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s. Bomer told the magazine, “I’ve never been part of a project that has invited so much conversation, vulnerability and engagement from complete strangers. Men and women, straight and LGBTQIA, saw themselves or someone they loved in the material.”

On Instagram, many praised the photos and said they wanted to see more of Bomer and Bailey.

“I need something else with the two of them playing lovers. Romantic comedy, serious drama I don’t care. I just need it,” was one well-liked comment. 

Another said they were “maybe the hottest on-screen couple ever.”

Here’s a reminder on when their characters first connected with one another in Fellow Travelers.

In demand

In a new interview this week with Naomi Watts for Variety, Bailey reveals that he was working on shooting Bridgerton, Fellow Travelers and the upcoming Wicked movie concurrently. 

“There are some videos on my phone that I was crying looking at: It’s me as Tim [in Fellow Travelers], in a ’50s tie and jacket, and then in Nike sweatpants learning the choreography [for Wicked] on the lunch break.”

Bailey was also the subject of a big LA Times profile last weekend. 

In it, he talked about the thrill of attending his first Pride festival when he was 18. However, despite this, he subsequently fell into a two-year relationship with a woman. 

“Dangerously, if you’re not exposed to people who can show you other examples of happiness, you think that’s the easiest way to live,” Bailey said. “It’s funny. You look back and you can tell the story in one way, which is that I always knew who I was and my sexuality and my identity within that. But obviously at times, it was really tough. I compromised my own happiness, for sure. And compromised other people’s happiness.”

Chemistry and future projects

Bailey was also dismissive of speculation that his on-screen chemistry with Bomer surely spilled over into real life.

“I would love for people to know that the success of our chemistry isn’t based on us f******. It’s actually about us leaning into the craft,” Bailey said. “It’s a vulnerable situation to be in, talking about it on record. I don’t want to rob people of their thoughts. But I do have a set of values, and as an artist, you don’t need to be f****** to tell that love story.”

Bailey is reticent to talk about his private life. He said a comment he made to the Evening Standard last December was misconstrued as meaning he had a boyfriend, but “it wasn’t true.”

Bomer married publicist Simon Halls in 2011.

Work-wise, expect to see more of both men in the coming month, even if not together at the same time. Bomer is likely to feature in the return of TV show White Collar. He’s also completed work on Outcome, a movie made by Jonah Hill for Apple+ TV. 

Bailey will be in Wicked and the next Jurassic World movie. 

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