Jonathan Bailey had hearts racing as Bridgerton Season 2's beloved romantic hero Anthony Bridgerton opposite Simone Ashley's Kate Sharma—have you already forgotten that steamy wet shirt scene, because we definitely have not. Now, he's getting TV fans even more riled up with the rumor that he might be joining the cast of yet another beloved Netflix series: Heartstopper.
Though Netflix has not confirmed Bailey's casting in Heartstopper Season 3, photos of the 35-year-old Brit seemingly on set of the dramedy's third season have hit social media. The Twitter account @FilmUpdates posted two photos of the actor allegedly in character as "Jack Maddox," wearing glasses and a cardigan while holding several props, including a "Trans Rights Are Human Rights" sign and a book entitled 10 Things I Hate About Plato, authored by the character.
While we await verification from the streamer, Heartstopper fans are already running with the rumors. One social media user, @cupidhawk, had an excited, all-caps reaction to Jonathan's supposed involvement:
JONATHAN BAILEY IN HEARTSTOPPER S3 OH MY GOD EVERYONE SHUT UP????
The X poster @BiPanicBiLove also pointed out that "Jack Maddox" might be inspired by "Henry Maddox," a character in the Alice Oseman-penned graphic novel series upon which the Heartstopper TV show is based. In the YA books, Maddox is a classics scholar that the protagonist Charlie Spring (played by Joe Locke in the Netflix series) has a crush on. The user posted a side-by-side of the photos of Jonathan and an illustration of Henry to further prove their point, writing:
Jonathan Bailey as Jack Maddox (Henry Maddox In the comic) for Heartstopper S3, I'm very excited 🙌
Fellow fans of the LGBTQ+ romance series joined in on the speculation on social media, writing:
- "If I had two nickels for every time Jonathan Bailey played a scholar of some sort with black rimmed glasses, I’d have two nickels which isn’t a lot but it’s crazy that it has happened twice" - @dilfthonyspinky
- "I can’t wait see Kit Connor get all flustered and tripping over Jonathan Bailey" - @jyndjarin
- "Hayley Atwell and now Jonathan Bailey in heartstopper season 3?" - @natsquake
- "No bc Jonathan Bailey has loved Heartstopper and always been so supportive of the cast and now he’s part of it" - @mvrlance
If Bailey—who can be seen next in Bridgerton Season 3 as well as the upcoming Wicked movie—does end up officially guest-starring in Heartstopper's third season, he'll not only join cast regulars like Locke, Kit Connor, and more, but he'll also be among newcomers including Hayley Atwell (who has reportedly been cast as Nick Nelson's Aunt Diane) and Darragh Hand (who will portray the beloved book character Michael Holden onscreen).
Along with confirmation about Jonathan Bailey's casting, we're still waiting to hear when Heartstopper Season 3 will be released on the 2024 TV schedule. In the meantime, you can rewatch the first two seasons of the show with a Netflix subscription, which will also come in handy when it's time to catch up with the hunky Anthony Bridgerton.
