Rumors swirled around Ariana Grande during the summer of 2023, as news broke that she and husband Dalton Gomez were divorcing after three years of marriage. Shortly after, it was reported that Grande began dating Ethan Slater – her fellow Wicked cast member – and that they’d allegedly started seeing each other while they were both married. Considerable speculation has surrounded their romance, and they’ve rarely commented on it. Now, Slater is getting real about his relationship with Grande and how he’s handled the attention.
Ethan Slater is currently in the midst of promoting the highly anticipated Wicked adaptation as is the case with his partner and co-stars. While participating in a profile piece for GQ, the veteran stage actor was asking about falling in love with the “One Last Time” singer. While Slater admitted that he found it “really difficult” to have his personal life analyzed by the general public, he says the overall whirlwind amounts to “an amazing year and a really beautiful thing.” He’s also excited for fans to see his girlfriend’s work as Glinda.
Nevertheless, rumors about the couple have persisted, even as they’ve become somewhat more open about their romantic involvement. As mentioned in the profile, Ariana Grande has used music as a way to drown out the noise. The Spongebob Musical star has also found a specific creative way to process the copious amounts of buzz:
I do a lot of writing. It’s obviously a different kind of writing. I do songwriting—that’s mostly for me, that’s my hobby at this point. And Marshall and I write a lot together. I write a lot on my own, and I think that has been my outlet in a lot of ways.
Ethan Slater, who plays Boq in Wicked, was quickly thrust into the spotlight once details of his reported relationship with Ariana Grande surfaced over a year ago. Before partnering up with the Grammy winner, Slater was married to high school sweetheart Lilly Jay from 2018 to 2024. Jay broke her silence on Slater’s new romance shortly after the initial story made waves. Among the thoughts Jay shared in her brief statement were that Grande was “not a girl’s girl” and that her own family had just become “collateral damage” amid the divorce rumors involving the singer and Dalton Gomez. Slater and Jay’s divorce was finalized in September 2024.
When it comes to not getting overwhelmed by the hype, the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel alum has more than his writing to help him process it all. By the sounds of it, he also has people in his corner to help him through it:
I’ve got an amazing support system of family and friends who I talk to and confide in in an industry that can be a little tough, that I’m just starting to get a taste of both sides of.
A number of celebrities have been candid about having to deal with backlash from social media users. Over the years, Ariana Grande herself has been on the receiving end of it for one reason or another. Aside from the rumors regarding her latest relationship, she’s also been critiqued for changing her voice for the role of Glinda. (Grande chalked up a lot of that criticism to a double standard between male and female performers.) Like his girlfriend, Slater doesn’t seem to have much time for trolls either:
But also, again, some of the hard parts that you’re talking about are the personal-life stuff that everybody in the world goes through. And so I am really focused on the real people in my life, who those things affect, and doing right by every real person and not the Twitter people who comment on it.
There’s a good chance that the general public will see Ethan Slater and Ariana Grande together more as they continue to do press for their movie. It’s also likely that insiders will continue to drop rumors about the pair. However, based on the comments Slater and Grande have shared on the matter, they’re paying more attention to their personal activities than to online chatter.
Wicked opens in theaters on November 22, while Part Two hits cinemas on November 21, 2025.