How Did Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater Pull This Off?
ByAllie Jones,
a freelance writer who covers celebrity, culture, and influence.
Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photos: Getty Images
At the Los Angeles premiere of Wicked (Part One) last weekend, photographers caught Ariana Grande adjusting her boyfriend Ethan Slater’s bowtie on the red carpet. Peoplecalled it a “sweet moment.” Marie Clairedeclared the interaction “adorable.” Even “Page Six” said it was “cute.” I could not have predicted the cultural embrace of this darling relationship back in July 2023, when TMZ broke the news that the co-stars were dating while still being married to other people.
Through a combination of carefully worded statements, choice paparazzi moments, and absolute devotion to the Wicked brand, Grande, 31, and Slater, 32, have somehow taken their relationship from scandal to sweet. I haven’t seen such an impressive PR turnaround since the Julia Roberts–Danny Moder affair back in 2002.
The beginning of Grande and Slater’s romance may have been messy, but they seem to have ironed everything out. Ahead of Wicked (Part One) finally opening in theaters next week, let’s all gather to reflect on how they got here.
November 2018
Slater marries his high-school sweetheart, Lilly Jay, a few months after he was nominated for a Tony for his performance as SpongeBob in the SpongeBob SquarePants musical.
May 2021
Grande marries real-estate agent Dalton Gomez in a small ceremony at her home in Montecito. According to Vogue, Grande wore a custom Vera Wang gown and an Audrey Hepburn–inspired short veil.
November 2021
Grande and her co-star Cynthia Erivo announce on Instagram that they have been cast as Glinda and Elphaba in Wicked.
August 2022
Slater and Jay welcome a baby boy together.
November 2022
Slater posts a tribute to Jay on Instagram for their wedding anniversary. Grande “likes” the post.
December 2022
Slater’s role as Boq in the Wicked movies is announced, and Grande and Slater both head to London to start filming.
February 2023
According to Grande’s divorce docs, this is when Grande and Gomez separate.
May 2023
But are they separated? Grande posts an Instagram tribute to Gomez on their wedding anniversary with the caption, “I love him so.” The post has since been deleted. A few days later, Slater wishes Jay a happy first Mother’s Day. (Grande “likes” that post, too.)
July 2023
Here’s where things get interesting. First, filming on the Wicked movies shuts down in London due to the SAG strike. Then, a few days later, Grande is spotted at Wimbledon with her co-star Jonathan Bailey, and she is not wearing her wedding ring. TMZ reports the next day that she and Gomez are over. A few days after that, TMZ and People confirm that Slater and Grande are dating.
“Ariana and Dalton separated in January,” a source tells People. “She and Ethan recently began dating, and he is separated from his wife.”
Gomez is quiet about this development, but Jay is not. She tells “Page Six” that Grande is “not a girl’s girl,” and that her family is “collateral damage.”
Slater then files for divorce from Jay.
September 2023
After a few months of quiet, Grande files for divorce from Gomez. She lists the couple’s date of separation as February 20, 2023. Later in the month, TMZ publishes some blurry photos of Grande and Slater with friends at Disney World.
“While this entire situation has been blown out of proportion, it’s much different than what has been portrayed in public,” a “friend of the couple” tells People. “They are just trying to navigate their new relationship in private.”
“People have tried to question the timeline,” another source adds. “The truth is, Ariana and Ethan didn’t begin seeing each other until after both parties were separated, respectfully.”
October 2023
Grande attends Slater’s opening-night performance of Spamalot on Broadway.
January 2024
Grande releases the first single from her new album Eternal Sunshine, titled “yes, and?” She pretty directly references the tabloid chatter about her relationship with the lyric “Why do you care so much whose dick I ride?”
Fans note that “Eternal Sunshine” and “Ethan Slater” have the same first letters. Ooh!
March 2024
Grande’s divorce is finalized.
June 2024
Grande’s half-brother, Frankie Grande, speaks out about the relationship for the first time while doing a red-carpet interview with TooFab. “He’s very very very sweet,” he says of Slater. “I just, I adore him. I, honestly I’ve always just said this, all I want is for my sister to be happy, and when she’s happy I’m happy. So I’m very happy.”
A few days later, Grande and Slater make their first public appearance together at the Stanley Cup Finals in Florida, 11 months after their relationship was announced.
September 2024
Slater’s divorce is finalized. Grande appears on the cover of Vanity Fair alongside Erivo and says that “evil, disreputable tabloids” have misrepresented her relationship with Slater. “The most disappointing part was to see so many people believe the worst version of it,” she says. “That was definitely a tough ride.”
She adds that she “will never go into certain details,” but insists that “there couldn’t be a less accurate depiction of a human being than the one that the tabloids spread” about her boyfriend.
October 2024
Slater addresses his side of the story (kind of) in an interview with GQ.
“Obviously, it was a really super big year,” he says. “And I think there was something that was really difficult about things in your private life being commented on and looked at by the public. There were a lot of big changes in private lives that were really happening, so it’s really hard to see people who don’t know anything about what’s happening commenting on it and speculating, and then getting things wrong about the people you love. So just to address that part of it, that feels really hard.”
November 2024
With their vague statements to the media out of the way, Grande and Slater start a whirlwind tour of premieres and appearances to promote Wicked.
Having had almost 18 months to process their relationship, fans seem ready to accept it. One offers Slater a friendship bracelet to give to Grande on the red carpet at the Sydney premiere; footage of this encounter goes viral online.
“Ethan Slater seems like the kindest and most genuine person,” says the “Wicked News Hub” account on X. “The world owes him an apology.”
Ladies and gentlemen, they did it. Now Grande and Slater just have to stay happily together and scandal-free until the second Wicked movie comes out — a full year from now. I believe in them!
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