Unconventional Queer love

Nico Tortorella and Bethany C Meyers

JAMAL GROOTBOOM jamald.grootboom@inl.co.za

Unconventional Queer love

We’ve compiled a list of queer celebrities that are or have been in nonmonogamous relationships

WHEN it comes to relationships, monogamy isn’t the only way to be in a loving relationship. While many people are familiar with polygamy it’s not the only option. As information about queerness has become more available, the concept of relationships outside of the heteronormative bubble have also become more accepted.

We’ve compiled a list of queer celebrities that are or have been in non-monogamous relationships.

Bob the Drag Queen, Ezra Michel and Jacob Ritts: Open Relationship / Polyamorous

Winner of season eight of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Bob the Drag Queen, real name Caldwell Tidicue (he/him/she/her), is one of the biggest stars to come from the Emmy award-winning reality TV show. Bob has gone on to appear in TV shows such as Tales of the City, star alongside Drag Race alumni Shangela and Eureka in HBO’s We’re Here and have his comedy specials airing on Comedy Central and Amazon Prime Video.

Bob is in a relationship with his two boyfriends, Jacob Ritts (he/him) and Ezra Michel (he/him). In one of his recent YouTube videos, Bob says he met Jacob on Grindr in 2017 while he was doing a show.

The Purse First star said he has never believed in monogamous relationships and he and Jacob decided to be open and polyamorous.

The comedian said he saw Ezra on Instagram and after talking to Jacob about it, he pursued Ezra and they started dating.

Bob the Drag Queen and his boyfriends Ezra Michel and Jacob Ritts.

Derrick Barry, Nebraska Thunderfuck/Mackenzie Claude and Nick San Pedro: Throuple

Las Vegas’s premier Britney Spears impersonator, Derrick Barry (he/him out of drag, she/her in drag), burst on the entertainment scene along with Bob on season eight of RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Derrick’s throuple relationship was well known in the queer community since it was still uncommon at the time. Derrick and Nick San Pedro (he/ him) were initially in a monogamous relationship and got married. Then one of Nick’s exes introduced them to model Mackenzie Claude (he/him out of drag, she/her in drag).

Derrick and Nick called the addition of Mackenzie to their relationship their fifth wedding anniversary gift. The trio is still going strong and recently appeared on the WOW Presents show RuPaul’s Drag Race: Vegas Revue.

On the reality TV show, the trio gave a peek into their day-to-day life, from sleeping in the same bed to brushing their teeth together.

Frankie Grande ex-couple: Former Throuple

Most known for being Ariana Grande’s brother, Frankie Grande (he/ him) is in a monogamous relationship with actor Hale Leon (he/him). However, before this, the Celebrity Big Brother star was in a throuple with married couple Daniel Sonasohn (he/him) and Mike Pophis (he/him), dating them for five months in 2018.

Speaking to Access Live at the time of making their relationship public, he said: “It is an ethical and committed non-monogamy. So everyone knows what’s going on, there’s no cheating, we’re actually in it together.” After their break-up Frankie said there were no hard feelings.

Ezra Miller — Polycule

Ezra Miller (they/them) is set to return in the DC Extended Universe as the Flash in Zack Snyder’s Justice League on March 18. Ezra made waves after they came out queer and non-binary since they landed leading roles in big-budget Hollywood movies. Ezra told Playboy Magazine that in 2018 they had gone through many failed relationships and had decided monogamy wasn’t for them. At the time, Ezra referred to themselves as a “sexual being”, saying they have companionship with various people, calling it a polycule. Talking about gaining membership to the polycule, they said: “I’m trying to find queer beings who understand me as a queer being off the bat, who I make almost a familial connection with.”

Nico Tortorella & Bethany C Meyers — Polyamorous/Open Relationship

A unique queer couple, Nico Tortorella (they/them) and Bethany C Meyers (they/them) have been together for more than 16 years. In 2018 they tied the knot and while at first glance they might appear to be a heterosexual couple, this is not the case. They both identify as nonbinary and are sexually fluid.

The former Younger star told Glamour US they had been polyamorous even before they had the vocabulary to explain it.

Bethany shared in an MBG Relationship article that they still face regular relationship issues such as jealousy. “Jealousy is absolutely the hardest thing,” they said. “As humans, we want to feel like we’re No 1 in our relationships.”

They said transparency was the important thing in their relationship and they had clear boundaries regarding intimacy with other people.

Nebraska Thunderfuck/Mackenzie Claude, Derrick Barry and Nick San Pedro.