PEOPLE confirmed Slater and Grande were dating in July 2023, some six months after production on Wicked first began. This came after Grande separated from her ex-husband, Dalton Gomez, and Slater separated from his ex-wife, Lilly Jay.

"To say I’m honored to be a part of this movie is the understatement of the century. I cannot wait for you to see it," the actor wrote

Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater’s relationship has been, since its inception, a point of controversy. We can’t definitively say what the timeline was, but, to many online, it sure looked like Slater left his wife,

Ariana Grande also shared a series of BTS photos and videos on Wicked’s premiere day, though Slater could only be seen in the background of one image. “Like a handprint on my heart,” she captioned the post,