When the first casting news broke that Jonathan Bailey and Matt Bomer would be starring together in a period drama, the internet basically had a collective meltdown. It wasn't just about two "internet boyfriends" sharing a screen. It was the fact that two of Hollywood’s most prominent openly gay leading men were going to tell a story that spanned four decades of queer history.
People expected sparks. They got a forest fire.
The show, Fellow Travelers, became a cultural touchstone not because it was "another gay story," but because the chemistry between Bailey and Bomer felt terrifyingly real. It’s rare to see that level of trust on camera. Honestly, you've probably seen the clips. You know, the ones that made everyone rethink what you can actually show on a prestige cable network.
The Chemistry Read That Made Executives Cry
You’d think for two actors of this caliber, a chemistry read would be a formality. It wasn't. Because of the timing, Bailey and Bomer actually had their first major "meeting" for the roles of Tim Laughlin and Hawkins Fuller over a Zoom call.
Creator Ron Nyswaner has often told the story of how an executive texted him during that virtual rehearsal. The message was simple: "I cried." Even through a computer screen, the contrast between Bomer’s "Hawk"—a cynical, polished State Department climber—and Bailey’s "Skippy"—a pious, wide-eyed optimist—was electric.
It’s a classic "opposites attract" dynamic. Hawk is all sharp edges and secrets. Tim is an open nerve.
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By the time they actually got to set in Toronto, the bond was already there. Bailey has joked in interviews about how they "hit the ground running," but the reality is more intimate. They spent hours at a local spot called Goldstruck Coffee, just talking through the script. They needed to trust each other because the show was going to ask them to go to some very dark, very vulnerable places.
Why the Jonathan Bailey Matt Bomer Pairing Worked So Well
A lot of the buzz around Jonathan Bailey Matt Bomer centers on the explicit nature of the show. Let’s be real: the sex scenes in Fellow Travelers are intense. But they aren't just there for shock value.
The production used an intimacy coordinator, which is standard now, but Bailey and Bomer took it further. They used those scenes to tell the story of how these two men changed over forty years. In the 1950s, the intimacy is frantic and dangerous—a reflection of the Lavender Scare where being caught meant the end of your life. By the 1980s, during the height of the AIDS crisis, that same intimacy becomes something much more somber and desperate.
The "Toe" Scene Everyone Still Talks About
If you've spent more than five minutes on social media, you’ve heard about the toe-sucking scene. Yeah, that one.
Matt Bomer told PEOPLE that he and Bailey are "bonded for life" because of that specific moment. It sounds funny, and it kind of is, but it was actually a huge moment for the characters. It established a power dynamic that lasted for the rest of the series. It wasn't in the book, either. It was a choice made to show how Tim was finding his own power within his relationship with Hawk.
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A Career Inflection Point
For Jonathan Bailey, Fellow Travelers was a massive departure from the "confident charisma" of Anthony Bridgerton. He had to de-glam. He had to play someone who was often pushed to the fringes.
It paid off. Bailey won the Critics Choice Award for Best Supporting Actor in 2024. During his speech, he shared the award with Bomer, saying that the two of them "come together" in the project. It was a class act.
Matt Bomer, meanwhile, finally got a role that let him play the "matinee idol" while subverting it. Hawk is a man who builds a traditional nuclear family with a wife (played by Allison Williams) as a shield. It’s a tragic role. Bomer’s performance was nominated for a Golden Globe and a SAG Award, cementing his status as one of the best dramatic actors of his generation.
Progress in 2025 and 2026
The impact of this pairing didn't stop when the show ended. In late 2025, Jonathan Bailey was named PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive.
Matt Bomer was the first to cheer him on. He told The Hollywood Reporter that the honor was "long overdue" and noted how impactful it was that Bailey was the first openly gay man to take the title. It’s a huge shift from where the industry was even ten years ago.
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Bailey’s career has since gone "supernova," as Backstage put it. Between Wicked and Jurassic World Rebirth, he's everywhere. But he often points back to Fellow Travelers as the project that changed his "trajectory." He’s even talked about starting a docuseries to record the stories of LGBTQ+ elders, inspired by the history he learned while working with Bomer.
What You Should Do Next
If you’re still reeling from the finale or just getting into the fandom, here are a few things to check out to get the full picture of their collaboration:
- Watch the 92NY Interview: There is a recorded talk from August 2024 where Bailey and Bomer discuss the "beach scene" from the 70s. It’s one of the most insightful looks at how they built their characters.
- Check the "Actors on Actors" Series: Bailey and David Corenswet (the new Superman) had a chat recently where Bailey dives deep into the technical side of his acting process.
- Follow the Shameless Fund: This is Jonathan Bailey’s charity project. He’s taking a bit of a break in 2026 to focus on this, and it’s a great way to see what he’s passionate about outside of acting.
- Look for Matt Bomer’s New Project: He is reportedly reuniting with the Fellow Travelers creative team for a new queer-led drama. It’s not a sequel, but it promises the same level of depth.
The story of Jonathan Bailey and Matt Bomer isn't just about a TV show. It’s about two actors who decided to stop playing it safe. They took a "soap opera" premise and turned it into a piece of history that actually matters to people. It’s about the fact that, in 2026, we don't just see these stories on the fringes—we see them winning awards and leading summer blockbusters.
Progress is slow. But as Bomer said, "progress is progress."