Ethan Slater Addresses Romance with Ariana Grande Amid Split Rumors Ahead of Wicked: For Good Premiere

Ethan Slater has appeared to address the speculation about his relationship with Ariana Grande, after insiders claimed the pair were heading for a split.

The pair met on the set of Wicked back in 2022, and began dating the following year while Ethan was still married to his high school sweetheart Lilly Jay.

Daily Mail then revealed last month that Ariana and Ethan’s plans for a wedding were put on hold, and while they haven’t been pictured together since April, sources claimed they’ve been ‘on and off’ for several months.

In the wake of the speculation, Ethan appeared to put the rumours to bed with a telling Instagram post over the weekend, following the release of NBC’s special Wicked: One Wonderful Night.

Among Ethan’s gallery of snaps, Ariana was noticeably present, including one backstage image that showed the actress and co-star Bowen Yang in a Wicked-themed photobooth. 

The programme saw Ariana and her co-star Cynthia Erivo perform an array of songs from the upcoming sequel Wicked: For Good which is set to be released on November 21.

Ethan Slater has appeared to address the speculation about his relationship with Ariana Grande, after insiders claimed the pair were heading for a split

The pair met on the set of Wicked back in 2022, and began dating the following year while Ethan was still married to his high school sweetheart Lilly Jay

Ethan’s post also came ahead of the London premiere of Wicked: For Good, which both he and Ariana are expected to attend alongside the cast. 

When news of their romance broke in July 2023, Ariana had just split from her husband Dalton Gomez, while Slater was still married to his high school sweetheart Lilly Jay with whom he shared a then one-year-old son.

That November, claims surfaced that the duo had taken their relationship to the next level, with Grande said to be living with the Spongebob Squarepants actor in New York City, during his turn in Broadway musical Spamalot.

Months later a furore broke out over the release of her singles Yes, and? – which appears to take aim at the hate she received over their romance – and The Boy is Mine on which she sings about a man she shouldn’t date because she ‘don’t wanna ’cause no scene’ as she is ‘usually so unproblematic.’

Critics have been feeding on signs their romance is not built to last and have long speculated that they have in fact silently split. 

Many have suggested they will not make it known until after Wicked 2 premieres and the hype dies down so as not to overshadow the release and the run up to the 2026 awards season.

Such predictions were further fueled earlier this month when a blind item claimed ‘Spongebob will not be allowed to do solo press for the upcoming movie. He will be allowed to do group events.’ 

In the wake of the speculation, Ethan appeared to put the rumours to bed with a telling Instagram post that featured a snap of Ariana filming the special Wicked: One Wonderful Night

The programme saw Ariana and her co-star Cynthia Erivo perform an array of songs from the upcoming sequel Wicked: For Good which is set to be released on November 21

It went on to claim that in ‘protest’ the man in question was planning to bring his ex. Another blind claimed an unnamed star has ‘given strict instructions that no one can ask about her significant other’ during interviews. 

Sources previously told the Daily Mail that Ariana’s career and level of fame has been another obstacle – Slater himself described her fans as ‘ferocious’ and ‘intense’ in a recent interview. 

Wicked: For Good is directed by award-winning Jon M. Chu, who was also behind the 2024 film.

The first movie was a box office success and raked in around $747.2 million on a budget of $150 million.

Wicked also received critical praise and was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and won two in March this year during the glitzy ceremony.