Baywatch was, and still is, a cultural phenomenon since first premiering in 1989.
Image via YouTube (Baywatch)
The show opened with the lifeguards, clad in their signature red swimsuits, running in slow motion on the beach with their golden skin shining and capturing our attentions from across the TV screens. Truly iconic; definitely unforgettable. Unfortunately, being in a popular series didn’t always guarantee the stars safety nets in their careers no matter how popular they were. Back in the 90’s, Alexandra Paul and Jaason Simmons were a staple on everyone’s TV screens when they both played lifeguards on the show.
Simmons joined the show in ’94, at a time when Baywatch was at its peak. He was brought in as the Australian exchange student Logan Fowler and stayed on the show for three seasons from 1994 to 1997. When asked about Simmons character, Paul described him as a heterosexual womanizer–a stark contrast to who Simmons was in real life! This was part of the reason why they had to hide his sexuality at the time.
When Simmons was on the show, he developed a close friendship with Paul, and to others who weren’t privy to Simmons sexuality, it seemed like the two were an item. At the time, cast members were aware that Simmons was gay:
“Everybody knew, I just didn’t speak about my private life…I was in a relationship for the whole time and they were all aware and it was fantastic and no issue.”
It was hard for Simmons to be public with his sexuality, so both Paul and Simmons remained mum on the topic of their true relationship in order to protect Paul, telling People during the premiere of After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun:
“We just let them think what they thought.”
Paul also shared:
“He and I were very, very close on the show and I became his beard, so to speak.” Further adding, “It was so dangerous for a man to come out, especially when you’re a handsome leading man because producers wouldn’t hire you as a hetero guy getting girls, and that was the character he was playing.”
Simmons came out in 2008 when he announced that he was marrying then fiancé, Irish actor John O’Callaghan.
Catch the sun, sea, sand, and throwbacks with After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun. You can watch the first four episodes now streaming on Hulu.