Jonathan Bailey Reunites with His 'Bridgerton' Co-Star in 'Wicked' (But It's Not Who You'd Think)

At first glance, Bridgerton and Wicked might seem like two worlds that couldn’t be more different. But thanks to Jonathan Bailey, there’s a surprising connection between the two—and it involves a very special horse.

The 36-year-old actor, who stars as Anthony Bridgerton in the hit Netflix series, is now taking on the role of Fiyero in Wicked, the upcoming movie adaptation of the Broadway musical. And while Bridgerton and Wicked are set in completely different worlds, there’s one thing both of Bailey’s characters have in common: horseback riding. In fact, both projects required Bailey to work closely with an animal—and, as it turns out, it was the same horse.

Bailey had formed a close bond with a horse named Jack while filming Bridgerton and, naturally, he wanted to be paired with him again for Wicked. In a TikTok shared by the official movie account on November 12, Bailey shared the heartwarming story of how he made his request to director Jon M. Chu.

“I went around to see Jon M. Chu before we started filming, and I said to him, I said, ‘I think I know who the horse is.’ And he was like, ‘What do you mean?’” Bailey recalled. “It’s Jack, the horse that I’d ridden in Bridgerton, who I had an amazing relationship with. People say, don’t work with kids and animals. But if it’s Jack, I’d say, ‘Take the job. He’s a legend.’”

The TikTok clip comes just a week after Bailey mentioned the story in an interview with The Popcorn Podcast on November 5, where he credited Jack for giving him the confidence to “go for gold” during Fiyero’s dramatic entrance scene. “I thought, you know, you need to start with a strong entrance,” he said.