Jonathan Van Ness, the star of Queer Eye, revealed that he is a survivor of sexual abuse, has battled substance abuse, and is HIV-positive in an interview with the New York Times. The interview discussed his upcoming memoir, Over the Top, which details his journey from growing up in Illinois to working as a hairdresser in Los Angeles and getting cast on Netflix’s reboot of Queer Eye.
In the interview, Van Ness reveals he was abused as a child by an older boy and was a victim of homophobic bullying at his school. In his early 20s, he became addicted to methamphetamine and went to rehab twice. He now drinks and smokes marijuana but is sober from any hard drugs.
At 25, he went to Planned Parenthood after fainting from flu-like symptoms while working at a hair salon. A test there revealed he was HIV-positive. In his book, he writes, “that day was just as devastating as you’d think it would be.”
In his interview with the New York Times, he said that he is healthy and now a proud “member of the beautiful HIV-positive community.”
The Netflix reboot of the ‘90s show Queer Eye For the Straight Guy made Van Ness a star and a fan favorite for his charisma and compassionate treatment of the show’s guests. In a recent interview with Out, he came out as gender-nonconforming and nonbinary.
