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22 Feb 2026 9:41
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  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Ethan Slater has settled his divorce from Lilly Jay

    The Broadway actor - who is now dating Ariana Grande - split from his high school sweetheart in summer 2023 amid claims he had grown close to his 'Wicked' co-star, and the pair have now agreed the terms of their split and had their divorce signed off by a judge, TMZ reports.


    It is unclear how the former couple have agreed to split their assets or custody of their two-year-old son.

    The 32-year-old actor and Ariana went public with their romance last October, three months after they split.

    After Ethan filed for divorce last July, Lilly hit out at the 'Thank U, Next' hitmaker - whose marriage to Dalton Gomez also ended in 2023 - and said her family had been "collateral damage".

    She told the New York Post newspaper's Page Six column: "[Ariana's] the story really. Not a girl's girl.

    "My family is just collateral damage.

    "The story is her and Dalton [Gomez, Ariana's estranged husband]."

    Earlier this year, Ariana voiced her frustration over the speculation surrounding her relationship.

    Addressing the conversation around her personal life, she told 'The Zach Sang Show': "I feel like we don't need to go into any specifics.

    "But of course, there's an insatiable frustration, inexplicable, hellish feeling with watching people misunderstand the people you love, and you and anything."

    Ariana previously described 2023 as one of the "most challenging" years of her life.

    She wrote on Instagram: "one of the most transformative, most challenging, and yet happiest and most special years of my life. there were so many beautiful and yet polarized feelings.

    "i've never felt more at the mercy of and in acceptance of what life was screaming to teach me. i've never felt more fulfilled by or present in my work, being able to cherish every moment. i gave everything i could have possibly given of my heart and of myself to the projects i was fortunate enough to be a part of and learned so much from every brilliant, beautiful, soul that i had the privilege of creating art with and crossing paths with this year.

    "i have never felt more pride or joy or love while simultaneously feeling so deeply misunderstood by people who don't know me, who piece whispers together and make what they want out of me and their assumptions of my life. i have learned how much more important one of those things is than the other. (sic)"

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

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     Today's News

    Law and Order:
    Police are investigating after three people were injured, one critically, in a dog attack in Christchurch yesterday afternoon 9:27

    Entertainment:
    Rita Ora recites mantras to herself in the mirror every day about ignoring online trolls 9:17

    General:
    The Women's Freeski Halfpipe Final at the Winter Olympics has been postponed 8:47

    Rugby:
    Wales' wretched run in Six Nations rugby has continued...losing 26-23 to Scotland in Cardiff - their 14th Six Nations loss in a row 8:47

    Rugby:
    The Blues are happy to have won ugly in Super Rugby, fending off the Force 42-32 in Perth 8:47

    Entertainment:
    Hilary Duff feels Disney were "a little scared" to revive Lizzie McGuire, but she thinks they should have "listened" to her 8:47

    Soccer:
    The Wellington Phoenix are on the lookout for a new head coach 8:37

    Auckland:
    A person has died after a vehicle hit a parked car and flipped in the Auckland suburb of Hillsborough yesterday evening 8:27

    Health & Safety:
    Palmerston North Hospital has received thousands in donations towards a surgical robot 8:27

    Entertainment:
    Margot Robbie makes movies "for the people who are going to buy tickets" 8:17


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