Aug 29
Alexandra Paul Remembers Posing as Girlfriend for Gay 'Baywatch' Co-Star Jaason Simmons
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
"Baywatch" alum Alexandra Paul looked back on the popular '90s series, recalling how she let the media and the public believe that she and gay castmate Jaason Simmons were a couple.
Speaking with People Magazine following the Aug. 26 premiere of the four-part Hulu docuseries "After Baywatch: A Moment in the Sun," Paul explained the arrangement, saying, "Back in the 1990s, 30 years ago, if you were a gay actor in Hollywood, not only would that affect your career negatively, but it could also affect you just out and about in the streets."
"You weren't as safe," she clarified.
People Mag recalled that "Simmons played the role of Logan," a character described by Paul as "a heterosexual guy who wanted to be [with] every woman on the show."
In real life, though, Simmons was someone completely different.
"That just shows what a good actor he is because yes, he was gay," Paul told the publication. "He and I were very, very close on the show and I became his beard, so to speak."
"She reveals that she and Simmons were 'so affectionate with each other,' that rumors of their relationship ran wild every time they were photographed together at various events," People Mag detailed.
Said Paul: "We just let them think what they thought."
Simmons was also on hand at the premiere event, where Paul spoke with the magazine. The Australian actor, now 54, told People, "It was like people saw us together and then that started on its own. So, we just went along, because I was only 22, 23 at the time."
Simmons came out publicly in 2008, revealing his relationship with Irish actor John O'Callaghan, to whom he was engaged at the time.
"Everybody knew, I just didn't speak about my private life," the magazine recalled him saying in a 2014 interview. "I'm pretty shy and introverted," he explained at the time.
"I was in a relationship for the whole time," Simmons went on to add, "and they were all aware and it was fantastic and no issue."
Simmons has appeared in several projects since the end of "Baywatch" in 2001, including SyFy's famously campy "Sharknado."
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
