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Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater kept their distance at the Wicked: For Good premiere in London on Monday night following split rumours.
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.
However the Daily Mail 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 then appeared to put the rumours to bed with a telling Instagram post over the weekend where he included her in a gallery of snaps giving a behind-the-scenes look at an NB special for the film.
One backstage image showed the actress and co-star Bowen Yang in a Wicked-themed photobooth.
But despite the strong message of his post, on Tuesday at the London premiere they still kept their distance in group pictures and didn’t pose together as a couple.
Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater kept their distance at the Wicked: For Good premiere in London on Monday night following split rumours
Ariana kept close to her co-star Cynthia Erivo on the green carpet while Ethan chose to mix with other cast members
Ariana looked gorgeous in a one strap black gown while Ethan looked smart in a satin grey suit.
Ariana kept close to her co-star Cynthia Erivo on the green carpet while Ethan chose to mix with other cast members.
When news of their romance broke in July 2023, Ariana had just split from her husband Dalton Gomez, while Ethan was still married to 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 Ariana 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? and The Boy Is Mine.
Yes, and? appears to take aim at the hate she received over their romance and in The Boy Is Mine she also 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.
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
However The Daily Mail 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 (seen in Feb 2025)
In the wake of the speculation, Ethan appeared to put the rumours to bed with a telling Instagram recent post that featured a snap of Ariana filming the special Wicked: One Wonderful Night
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.’
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.
