COUPLESAriana Grande Gushes Over 'Adorable' Boyfriend Ethan Slater: 'My Heart Is Very Happy'
Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater have been dating since July 2023.
Ariana Grande is Wicked-ly in love with her boyfriend, Ethan Slater.
The actress — who stars as Glinda the Good Witch in the two-part film adaptation of the hit musical — opened up about her relationship with Slater during the Los Angeles premiere of Wicked on Saturday, November 9.
Ariana Grande praised her 'adorable' boyfriend, Ethan Slater, at the L.A. premiere of 'Wicked.'
Grande, 31, was asked to share her reaction to Slater holding the train of her dress at the movie's premiere in Australia, to which she gushed to a news publication: "Oh, my God, it’s always [adorable]. He’s always that adorable."
"And he’s so amazing in this film. He’s such an amazing person," she said on the red carpet of her costar-turned-boyfriend, who plays the role of Boq the Munchkin Man in Wicked. "I’m so happy people are getting to know him. My heart is very happy."
Ethan Slater said his girlfriend, Ariana Grande, is 'incredible' in 'Wicked.'
Slater, 32, had similar praise of his girlfriend while walking the red carpet at the L.A. premiere, telling a news outlet: "I’m so proud of Ariana. She’s incredible in this movie, and now to be able to share in the celebration of it, I’m just grateful."
The A-list couple's relationship first caught attention over the summer of 2023, when Grande was deemed a "homewrecker" by online critics after their romance was exposed amid the "7 Rings" singer's split from her ex-husband Dalton Gomez earlier that year.
Ariana Grande started dating Ethan Slater after separating from her ex-husband, Dalton Gomez.
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A source confirmed the lovebirds — who met on the London set of Wicked — were dating in July 2023. Later that same month, Slater filed for divorce from his ex-wife, Lilly Jay, after four years of marriage.
Jay and Slater had been high school sweethearts and welcomed their first child together in August 2022. After learning about The SpongeBob Musical: Live on Stage! star's budding romance with Grande, haters were left livid, accusing the Nickelodeon alum of taking a man away from his family.
Grande addressed said backlash during an interview with Vanity Fair for a cover story published in September.
"The most disappointing part was to see so many people believe the worst of it. That was definitely a tough ride," she confessed before speaking fondly of Slater. "There couldn’t be a less accurate depiction of a human being. … No one on this earth tries harder or spreads themselves thinner to be there for the people that he loves and cares about. There is no one on this earth with a better heart."
Ethan Slater was still legally married to his ex-wife, Lilly Jay, when he started dating Ariana Grande.
"Of course, I went through a lot of life changes during the filming of [Wicked]," she mentioned. "A lot of people that were working on it did. We were away for two years.”
Slater also discussed the public's involvement in his divorce and the Broadway actor's relationship with Grande that followed while speaking with GQ in October.
"Obviously, it was a really super big year, 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," the dad-of-one admitted.
He noted: "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."
