With Wicked being a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, this new photo of Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater might be a “prequel” of a rumored friendship. In the picture – taken on May 31st – Ariana, 30, appears as her character Glinda, while Ethan, 31, stands dressed as his character, Boq. The scene in question is when Ariana’s character arrives at university and bids farewell to her parents, kicking off the sequence of events between Ariana’s Glinda and Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba.
The photo comes days after PEOPLE reported that Ethan and Ariana were linked. The “thank u, next” singer reportedly split from her husband, Dalton Gomez, at the start of the year, and the couple are working out the details of their impending divorce. The publication reports that Ethan is similarly separated from his wife, Lilly Jay, with whom he shares a son. “[Ariana] and Ethan recently began dating,” PEOPLE alleged on July 20, suggesting that there’s no (flying) monkey business with this new rumored romance.
Ethan will play Boq, a Munchkin character, in the upcoming 2024 adaptation of the hit Broadway play (which itself was based on the novel Wicked by Gregory Maguire.) Broadway fans also know Ethan as the actor who originated the role of SpongeBob SquarePants in the SpongeBob SquarePants musical. The part netted him a Tony Award nomination in 2018.
Ariana and Dalton haven’t spoken about the reports of their breakup. The former couple started dating in early 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic. They wed in secret in May 2021 after quarantining together for a year. Apparently, when the restrictions were lifted, Dalton – a real estate agent – found himself at odds with Ariana’s fame and the lifestyle that comes with it. They reportedly realized they were two different and called it a day.
Since the start of the year, Dalton has reportedly returned to the dating pool. He supposedly flew to London (where Wicked is filming) in January in an attempt to save the marriage, but the efforts were in vain. He is reportedly still very “devastated” with the end of his marriage and still wants to win Ariana back. ” “A separation is not what he’s wanted,” a source told Us Weekly. “He wanted the fairy tale, happy ending, and it’s not looking that way.”
