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Former Wicked co-stars turned couple Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater have reportedly decided to end their relationship after being together for almost three years, but honestly, this was never going to be a typical celebrity break up story.
According to reports, Ariana and Ethan quietly split several months ago, with a source telling People that it was “amicable” and that they “took a lot of time and careful consideration” before deciding to go their separate ways.
The source also claimed that they are still friends and supportive of each other, which is basically the celebrity split version of saying there is no drama, please stop refreshing TikTok.
But people are clearly not doing that. Ariana and Ethan first met while shooting the movie Wicked, she played the role of Glinda and he played the role of Bok. It was the kind of quick and unique pairing that most Ariana fans weren’t expecting. But from the beginning, the talk was not just limited to their coming together, although fans raised questions on this too. He was also very interested in the timeline.
Their relationship became public in early 2023 when both of them were coming out of their marriage. Ariana has separated from her husband Dalton Gomez, while Ethan has filed for divorce from his wife Lily J, with whom he had a son less than a year ago. Ethan’s life and Ariana’s own relationship history overlapped with a dramatic change, or at least the public perception of one, that blew up the story online.
Lily later spoke out about the situation in an open letter, writing: “Nobody gets married thinking they will get divorced.” She also described dealing with the public breakdown of her marriage in the shadow of her husband’s new relationship with a celebrity. This was a line that cut through all the flashy Wicked promos and made the whole thing seem far more real.
Ariana and Ethan kept their relationship mostly private after that, but the Internet never let it rest. Every red-carpet appearance, every supportive comment, every little conversation during a Wicked promo seems to come with people re-examining the same supposed timeline.
Now that they have reportedly parted ways, talks have resurfaced. Fans are revisiting Lily’s comments, old blind spots are being brought back up, and people are once again treating the relationship like a group project that was assigned to them three years ago and never ended.
To be clear, a jumbled timeline does not prove cheating, and a lot of the claims about Ariana’s dating history are still just claims. But celebrity culture in 2026 isn’t really ‘innocent until proven otherwise’. It takes screenshots, Reddit threads, TikToks with dramatic background music, and people saying “Wait, let me explain” before devising a 12-part investigation.
The timing is also interesting for Ariana, who just kicked off her Eternal Sunshine Tour and is preparing to release her next album, Petal, later this summer. Reports say that she is doing well and focusing on work, which is understandable.
If anyone knows how to channel the public’s sadness, perception, and confusion into a new era, it’s Ariana Grande.
Still, the reaction proves that this relationship was never meant to be just a relationship. It became part celebrity romance, part Internet trial, part wicked behind-the-scenes drama, and part reminder that when there’s a wedding, a baby, and a global pop star involved, people will never keep things casual.
Ariana and Ethan may be over, but the timeline discussion is still trying to be put together.
Words by Andrew Connolly