Summary
- Johnny Galecki's past roles as gay characters led to assumptions about his sexuality, but he never felt the need to correct anyone.
- In a 2009 interview, Johnny addressed the rumors, stating that he never addressed them because he didn't find them offensive.
- Johnny confirmed that he is straight and explained that he didn't want to offend anyone while subtly expressing his support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Today, Johnny Galecki's most famed relationship was his relatively short-lived romance (it didn't last as long as The Big Bang Theory did) with a co-star. But years ago, fans didn't know very much about Johnny's love life, and many rumors circulated that he might be gay.
In an interview, right around the time TBBT was taking off, Johnny sat down for an interview where he had a very diplomatic reaction to fans assuming he was gay. While fans today probably feel confident in their understanding of Johnny's orientation, he never felt the need to correct anyone back in the day. When pressed, he did confirm he was straight, but in the best way.
People Thought Johnny Was Gay Due To His Portrayals Of Gay Men
Though he's most famous today for The Big Bang Theory, Johnny Galecki had many acting gigs before he appeared on the sitcom. Not only did he act on Roseanne for quite some time, but he also had various other gigs.
For example, in The Opposite of Sex in 1998, Johnny played a gay side character. He did the same in 2000's Bounce, and also in a 2006 play called The Little Dog Laughed.
In 1992, Galecki was cast as David Healy in Roseanne, where he did play a straight character. But his past roles, combined with perhaps his looks or mannerisms, had people assuming he was gay.
During that time, it was also somewhat less common for straight actors to play gay characters, or for anyone who was LGBTQ+ to be out about it. As for Johnny, when asked whether he was gay, Johnny had a good response seemingly prepared.
Johnny Galecki Had The Best Response To Being Asked If He Was Gay
In a long-ago interview with Time Out Chicago, Johnny chatted about his early career days, home life, and upbringing in the Chicago public school system. The interviewer pointed out that Johnny had "played [his] fair share of gay roles," and asked whether that "presented a problem" in Johnny's own love life.
Galecki's response was to clarify, "Do people assume that I’m gay? Mm-hm. Well, you look online, and it’s pretty much there."
This was in 2009 when being openly gay was probably less common than it would become later in Johnny's career, but the speculation didn't necessarily bother him. Johnny even admitted that he hadn't really addressed the public rumors and for a specific reason.
He explained, "There’s a lot of assumption there, but I’ve never really addressed it because why defend yourself against something that’s not offensive?" This was probably the best answer he could have possibly given, a very non-offensive but factual reply that hinted he has nothing against people who are not straight.
The interviewer's reply was, "I read you were out as straight. So you’re not out as anything?"
Johnny agreed that was basically correct, confirming, "No, I happen to love women, so I guess that would make me straight—I don’t know. I don’t mean to be so enigmatic, but I’m trying to keep from offending people."
Had the interviewer left it at that, Johnny probably would not have pointed out that he didn't want to offend people, but he clearly had the right motivation in coming up with such a measured response.
It doesn't seem as if he was only trying to avoid offending people; he was also subtly confirming his belief that being gay isn't a bad thing. At the time, of course, he was co-starring with Jim Parsons (who admitted to having a crush on Kunal Nayyar at first) in TBBT, so there is one simple explanation for Johnny trying not to be offensive while also confirming his own orientation.
The interviewer wrapped up by joking that the publication could "put that on the record" that Johnny loves women, which Galecki agreed was just fine.
Johnny Galecki Has Dated Some High-Profile Hollywood Women
Given that the interview was back in 2009, when Johnny Galecki had been playing Leonard Hofstadter for a couple of years already, the perception of the actor has since changed.
That was also the same year he and Kaley Cuoco split up, though not much was known about the actor's relationships prior to their much-publicized relationship.
Johnny did date his former co-star Sara Gilbert, who realized she was gay while seeing him, but his other relationships (if any) flew largely under the radar. Johnny is rumored to have dated ladies like Kelli Garner, Ari Graynor, and Laura Harris, but he seems to keep his personal life, well, personal.
In 2018, Johnny's latest confirmed relationship was with Alaina Meyer, who he later had a child with. Unfortunately, the two broke up in 2020, but they have apparently shared custody of their child.
