'That's absurd': Half Man star Jamie Bell's sexuality and his relationships with two Hollywood stars
Jamie Bell stars alongside Richard Gadd in Half Man
Half Man stars Jamie Bell as a Scottish man afflicted by his sexuality – naturally, it may make you curious about the actor himself.
The BBC drama follows Niall (Bell) and Ruben (Richard Gadd), two ‘brothers’ – not related by blood, but connected by their mums – over the course of three violent, traumatic decades, all revolving around their reunion at a wedding.
While not based on a true story, Half Man makes sense as a successor to Baby Reindeer. Both Niall and Ruben are insecure about what it means to be a man – and it doesn’t give any easy answers.
Both Bell and his character’s younger star, Mitchell Robertson, are involved in some pretty graphic scenes. However, unlike Niall, Bell’s sexuality is rather straightforward.
Jamie Bell’s sexuality explained after Half Man
While Jamie Bell has never explicitly said the words, “I’m straight”, there hasn’t been any indication he’s anything other than heterosexual.
Rumours concerning Bell’s sexuality date back to his iconic performance in Billy Elliot. The star developed a close relationship with director Stephen Daldry (he was 13, while Daldry was 41 at the time), even describing him as his soulmate (via The Mirror).
However, when he was 19, Bell addressed speculation about his sexuality.
“Me, gay? That’s absurd. People can think what they want. But I do find all these rumours about whether I’m gay weird. And on a personal level, it’s a bit odd to be talking about it,” he said.
Don't miss a single story! Add us as a Preferred Source in Google for all your television news
Bell has only ever been linked romantically with women. However, he has starred in several projects about gay characters and people (All of Us Strangers, Rocketman), not to mention the overt homoeroticism in The Eagle.
This was brought up to him in an interview with Awards Watch. “There are these patterns to your life that you are not aware of,” he said.
Who has Jamie Bell dated?
There are reports online that Bell once dated an actress named Amy Derova, but there are no photos or any other information to indicate this is true.
However, we know he was married to Westworld star Evan Rachel Wood for two years (2012-2014), and they have a son together.
Wood (who’s an openly bisexual woman) first met at the Sundance Film Festival and later starred together in Green Day’s ‘Wake Me Up When September Ends’ video.
Their son was born in 2013, a year after they wed in California. However, they separated in May 2014. Six years later, Bell accused Wood of “withholding [their] son” from him, but she argued she was trying to protect him from her former fiancé, Marilyn Manson.
As of October 2025, the pair have agreed to joint legal and physical custody.
Is Jamie Bell married?
Jamie Bell is married to actress Kate Mara, known for her roles in House of Cards, 24, and The Martian.
Both stars met on the set of 2015’s (notoriously dreadful) Fantastic Four. “We were friends but… we didn’t really know each other,” she said during an appearance on the Where Everybody Knows Your Name podcast.
The vibe on the film was “rough”. However, Bell and Mara “got to know each other on it, and [she] thought, ‘Oh, he’s so great.'”
“He was single and I was trying to set him up with all these people. Cause I thought, ‘Oh god, I’ve [got to] set him up with someone. He’s the biggest catch. How is he not with someone amazing?'” she recalled.
“And then, yeah, we fell in love on the press tour of that movie ’cause it was trauma bonding.”
Mara has other famous connections. Her sister is Rooney Mara, Joaquin Phoenix’s wife and an actress known for her roles in Her and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
Her parents, Timothy Christopher Mara and Kathleen McNulty Mara, have powerful links to American football, making Mara a sports scion.
Her mum’s side of the family has held ownership in the Pittsburgh Steelers for nearly a century. Her dad’s side also has ownership in the New York Giants. Her cousin, Art Rooney II, is the current president of the Steelers.
Bell and Mara have two kids together, and they got married in 2017.
Read more: The best BBC iPlayer films you can watch now
