Wicked star Jonathan Bailey becomes the highest-grossing box office star of 2025

WORDS BY SAM DAMSHENAS

Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Universal Pictures

In a major win for LGBTQIA+ representation in Hollywood, Jonathan Bailey has officially become the highest-grossing box office actor of 2025.

Last week, Wicked: For Good dominated both domestic and international charts with respective openings of $147 million and $223 million, making history as the biggest opening weekend ever for a Broadway adaptation.

Bailey returns as Fiyero Tigelaar in the record-breaking sequel, starring alongside Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba Thropp, Ariana Grande as Glinda Upland, Jeff Goldblum as The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Marissa Bode as Nessarose Thropp, Ethan Slater as Boq Woodsman and Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible.

But For Good is just one part of Bailey’s 2025 domination.

Earlier this year, he also headlined the global smash Jurassic World: Rebirth as Dr. Henry Loomis, the role that spawned the now-ubiquitous “slutty little glasses” meme and helped propel the film to an $868 million worldwide gross.

(It certainly didn’t hurt that the blockbuster also starred Scarlett Johansson — the most successful box office star of all time — alongside Oscar winner Mahershala Ali and the backing of one of the most lucrative film franchises of all time…)

As of writing, Jurassic World: Rebirth stands as the fourth highest-grossing film of 2025, trailing only Ne Zha 2, Lilo & Stitch and A Minecraft Movie. And with Wicked: Part 1 finishing its run at $759 million, it’s clear that For Good is on track to secure a place in 2025’s top 10, with a strong chance of surpassing its predecessor.

Bailey’s 2025 box office domination is an especially profound milestone given how often queer actors have been advised, subtly or explicitly, that living openly would cost them roles, audiences and box office pull.

That makes his next achievement even more resonant: being named PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive, becoming the first openly gay actor in history to receive the title.

After the announcement, Bailey’s Wicked castmates — Erivo, Grande, Goldblum, Bode, Slater, Bowen Yang and director Jon M. Chu — appeared in a video congratulating him, each offering their own enthusiastic tribute.

“He’s the sexiest man not only on this planet but in the solar system, in the universe and any multiverse,” Goldblum declared, while Chu added, “And all of Oz, of course.”

Bode echoed the sentiment with, “Clearly, look at those abs,” and Grande described Bailey as “the kindest, and the most brilliant, and beautiful inside and out.”

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