Is Nick Offerman Gay, Bisexual, or Straight in Real Life? (& Is He Married)

Nick Offerman is best known for his role as the hilarious, hard-headed, manly-man Ron Swanson in the show Parks and Recreation. However, he absolutely nailed his role as Bill in The Last of Us – a hard-headed survivalist who eventually showed his soft side and found love with another apocalypse survivor, Frank. So, fans wondered, is Nick Offerman gay, bisexual, or straight in real life?

While his character in The Last of Us, Bill, is gay, Nick Offerman is straight in real life. He has been married to his wife and fellow actress, Megan Mullally, since 2003. However, they are both vocal when it comes to gay rights, and they did a Human Rights Campaign in 2012 supporting gay marriage.

It was incredible to see how Nick Offerman transformed into that tender role in The Last of Us, and yet, Bill was still a hard-nosed, gun-wielding guy who you wouldn’t even guess had a soft side. Even Offerman himself said he loved the challenge, as he’s usually known for roles such as Ron Swanson, and was very happy to have Murray Bartlett to guide him through.

Is Nick Offerman’s character in The Last of Us Gay?

Nick Offerman played Bill in HBO’s The Last of Us series. Bill is a hardcore prepper (or a survivalist, as he corrects Joel in the episode) who stayed behind after his entire small town was ‘evacuated.’ He made it his own private quarantine zone, surrounded by a fence, booby traps, and all kinds of protection.

He seemed like a completely emotionless guy and lived a self-sustainable life for about four years. Then, a guy named Frank walks into one of his traps, but instead of killing him, Bill decides to spare Frank’s life, giving him food and a shower before setting him back out on his way. The thing is, one meal turned into twenty years of love, care, and life together.

Yes, Nick Offerman’s character, Bill, was gay. Even though he looks like a rough, tough, emotionless guy, we learn that he has a beautiful, soft side, which he kept hidden from everybody his entire life – even from himself. Frank was the one to help him break out of his shell and step into a relationship with another man for the first time.

The episode was absolutely beautiful, especially the ending (I’m trying not to spoil here, guys), and almost right from the start, it was made abundantly clear that Bill and Frank were a happy, loving gay couple, ready to spend eternity together, even in the darkest, apocalyptic times.

That being said, there’s a big discrepancy between what we saw in the TV show and what happens in The Last of Us video game, which the series was based on. In the series, we don’t actually meet Frank. And it was never explicitly stated that he and Bill were gay. They are only referred to as partners but never claim to be romantic partners.

Also, when Frank had enough of Bill and left their quarantine because Bill was too stuck in his ways, he got infected and decided to hang himself. That’s when he left a suicide note for Bill, saying how much he hated him for being so ignorant and stuck in his ways, never actually living – only surviving. That’s a huge difference from the loving, beautiful couple we saw in the show. 

Still, there are numerous hints pointing at Bill being a gay man in the game as well, just like he was in the show. I mean, he and Frank lived together for years and called themselves partners throughout. Also, you can find gay magazines underneath Bill’s car seat, hinting at the fact that Frank was, in fact, his romantic partner, or at the very least, that Bill wanted him to be.

Is Nick Offerman gay, straight, or bisexual in real life?

Although Nick Offerman absolutely nailed the role of a tough, gun-firing fellow who turns out to be a gay man with a soft, heartwarming side, he is not gay, or even bisexual, in real life. Offerman is a straight man and has been married for the last twenty years.

That being said, he expressed that he really loved portraying Bill and doing such a complex role, with so much depth of character, because everyone knows him as Ron Swanson or guys in other roles that were just your typical ‘manly man.’

However, he was quite nervous about Bill’s role because he wanted to do it well and from the heart. Luckily, he had an amazing co-star by his side in Murray Bartlett, who portrayed Frank in The Last of Us. Bartlett is a gay man in real life and already did scenes with other men in various roles, so he was kind of there to guide Nick through those intimate scenes.

Peter Hoar, the director of this particular episode of The Last of Us, shared with Esquire how it looked on the set:

“Murray Bartlett is a gay man. Murray Bartlett has done scenes in bed with other men. And so when we got to that scene in particular, it was life-informing art because he was saying, “Don’t worry, you’ll be okay. I’ll look after you. I’ll be nice to you. Don’t be nervous.” And Nick was nervous, not because he was in bed with a man, but nervous because it meant so much. 

What Nick did really well is he guarded himself in so many ways as Bill. When the cracks appear and the emotion starts, he does such a beautiful job on these little things. And the things that I, as a gay man, might notice that he does are a bit fussy. Moving the plate, turning the plate round a few times.”

It really did mean so much because, if you ask me – a straight man with a female partner of eight years – this was one of the most beautiful, outstanding TV episodes, not just in recent years but ever. Nick and Murray did a spectacular job, and we need more shows and episodes like this for people to finally realize that love is love and always beautiful!

Who is Nick Offerman married to?

I’ve mentioned that Nick Offerman is married, and you probably know his wife, too! Nick is married to a fellow actress, Megan Mullally, probably best known for her role as Karen Walker in the hit sitcom Will & Grace.

The happy couple met in 2000 while doing a play together and married just three years later. They have been happily married ever since. Although they are straight people, they are highly vocal about LGBTQ+ rights and were a part of the HRC (Human Rights Campaign) campaign called Americans for Marriage Equality.

Their commercial was just hilarious, as the couple talked about how unfair the law is when it comes to marriage in the US. 

“You know, the night Megan and I got married, she actually thought she was marrying Cedric the Entertainer. But that’s how the law works. Any random man and woman can casually show up at a 24-hour wedding chapel in Vegas, exchange ‘I do’s’, and boom – they’re married!

So, why can’t gay and lesbian couples, who have literally spent their entire adult lives together, have the same opportunity?”

So there you have it! While Nick Offerman portrayed a gay character in Bill, he’s not a gay man himself. However, he and his wife are vocal about gay rights, which explains why he was so absolutely perfect for the role in The Last of Us!