Jonathan Van Ness of Queer Eye reveals he is nonbinary

In an interview with Out, one fifth of Queer Eye's "Fab Five" revealed that he is not, in fact, a gay man.
Jonathan Van Ness, the Netflix show's grooming expert, told Out, "I'm nonbinary — I'm gender nonconforming," explaining that he doesn't identify solely with masculinity. "I feel like my feminine identity is what makes me the strongest," he said, listing idols like Shania Twain, Celine Dion, and Aretha Franklin.
Asked about identifying with the label "nonbinary," Van Ness clarified that his identity is nothing new. While he grew up "wearing heels and wearing makeup and wearing skirts," he "just didn't know what the name was."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Van Ness also discussed his partnership with nail polish brand Essie for Pride month. "Any opportunity I have to break down stereotypes of the binary, I am down for it, I'm here for it," he said, speaking about partnering with a brand marketed mostly towards women. As for what the rest of us can do to celebrate Pride, Van Ness recommended a healthy dose of activism: "We really need to get this Equality Act passed."
Read the full interview at Out.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Shivani is the editorial assistant at TheWeek.com and has previously written for StreetEasy and Mic.com. A graduate of the physics and journalism departments at NYU, Shivani currently lives in Brooklyn and spends free time cooking, watching TV, and taking too many selfies.
-
Mermaiding: the underwater subculture on the rise
Under the Radar Cosplay meets fitness in an escapist fin-omenon that's making waves around the world
-
Delhi's dogs earn Supreme Court reprieve
IN THE SPOTLIGHT After an outcry from the public and animal rights activists, India's Supreme Court walks back a controversial plan to round the city's stray dog population into shelters
-
8 hotels with ace tennis courts
The Week Recommends Bring your A game
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Sex, drugs and a royal ruckus: the US play with a future gay Prince George
Talking Point The controversial off-Broadway show is a hit with audiences in New York
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle