Jonathan Van Ness first burst onto the scene, and into our hearts, as part of Netflix's
rebooted super-hit Queer Eye.
As one fifth of the brand new Fab Five, he was a sparkly, positive, meme-generating breath
of fresh air.
But there's a lot most fans don't know about the TV star.
Idol on the ice
Unsurprisingly, for someone who participated in both gymnastics and cheerleading growing
up, Van Ness openly worships figure skaters.
"I have been watching figure skating like it was the end of the world since 1992."
But his one true idol is Mirai Nagasu because, quite simply, she never gave up on her dreams.
Nagasu's Olympic story inspired JVN so much that he even invited her onto his podcast,
Getting Curious.
"Mirai Nagasu, Adam Rippon, figure skating, really just like all the figure skating, all
the figure skaters."
The star's love of ice skating clearly runs deep.
Van Ness revealed to Vulture that Rudy Galindo was the one who "Queer Eye-d" Van Ness when
he was a child.
He remembered,
"He was the first openly gay man, HIV+, in 1995 he went to the U.S. skating championship
for the first time.
[…] He came in third in the world.
It was so major."
Rising like a phoenix
During an upbeat chat with his mom on Getting Curious, things took a dark turn when Van
Ness revealed just how badly he was picked on as a kid, saying,
"When I say I was bullied, it is not strong enough."
"I've been bullied my entire life and I will not let you, I will not let you."
JVN dug into it further with Vulture, explaining,
"Where I come from, I have had people my entire life tell me to my face, 'I don't agree with
your lifestyle.
You should never be able to be married.'
[…] When I say chased around with pitchforks, I'm halfway kidding."
Landing Queer Eye
By JVN's own admission, prior to Queer Eye, he auditioned for every, quote, "obvious gay"
character.
As he told the Ladygang podcast, it was only when the makeover show came along that he
truly felt he'd found his calling.
"Yes balance, yes symmetry."
However, as JVN admitted to Into The Gloss, he never thought he'd get the job, saying,
"I felt like a contestant on America's Next Top Model who made it into the final two because
I was like, 'I really, really want this every moment it gets closer […] but you look like
a big gay Jesus, girl, you're just not gonna get this job!'"
The producers were, of course, totally team Jonathan.
"Hey, we're the Fab 5 from Netflix's Queer Eye."
Getting real
Jonathan might be the bright spark on Queer Eye, but don't let his sunny disposition fool
you.
Van Ness isn't afraid to speak his mind, telling Elle,
"I just go and I get all my anger out on Twitter.
If I read something on the news that really irritates me, I get my rageful venting out
on Twitter."
"Baby Bobbers is strugs to func.
That's struggling to function.
Strugs to func."
Van Ness got real regarding the infamous bakery which refused to make a cake for a gay wedding,
telling Vulture,
"When I walk out of a room with someone like that, I know very clearly the thoughts that
are going through their head."
Battling depression
Jonathan hasn't always been the life-affirming ray of sunshine he serves on Queer Eye.
Aside from childhood bullying, JVN has struggled with depression, particularly after the death
of his stepfather in 2012.
Van Ness told Elle,
"That was the year when I gained all of this weight.
[…] There were six months when I don't think I opened my mail, and I definitely forgot
to pay my taxes for like a year.
I think when you get in that really debilitating clinical depression, you can't get out of
bed."
It took two years for Van Ness to find his new normal, but, as he explained to InStyle,
he now works out for himself, sharing his fitness journey to encourage others, too.
He says,
"It's something that I choose to share because I want to help people feel better and I found
that for me, just sharing myself seems to be helping."
"You're gonna look at yourself right in the eye...I am enough.
I am enough...mm-hmm."
His thing with 'Lisa Rinna'
On the Ladygang podcast, Van Ness revealed the haircut he would give his worst enemy:
the "Lisa Rinna."
And let's be honest, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star is likely the only person
who can pull off her iconic look.
"She's so mean, she's so aggressive, she's so this, she's so that, blah, blah, blah,
blah, blah, blah, blah...whatever…"
Pressed on how he'd style it, Van Ness revealed he'd make the hair super shaggy "at the height
of summer" when it would be the worst to maintain.
But considering how JVN is happy to lend his talents in all manner of YouTube tutorials
and in practically every interview he's ever done, it's only fitting to give this show-stopping
makeover master one fun hypothetical opportunity to do a little damage.
"See ya next time, ugh."