News | Entertainment
21 Feb 2026 8:39
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   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

     Other Entertainment News
     21 Feb: Paris Hilton and Carter Reum have renewed their wedding vows
     21 Feb: Shia LaBeouf has been arrested in New Orleans following an alleged altercation during Mardi Gras celebrations
     21 Feb: James and Kimberly Van Der Beek renewed their wedding vows days before the actor died
     21 Feb: Jelly Roll and wife Bunnie Xo want to have twins via a surrogate in the future
     21 Feb: All Saints stars Natalie Appleton and Nicole Appleton have revealed the truth behind their band's feud with rival '90s girl group the Spice Girls - they secretly were all friends
     20 Feb: President Donald Trump has remembered the late Jesse Jackson as "a good man, with lots of personality, grit, and street smarts" - and claimed he "could not stand" Barack Obama
     20 Feb: Nicole Kidman is reportedly being "romantically pursued" by MGM Resorts boss Paul Salem following her split from Keith Urban
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    A positive update after a scary moment for skier Fin Melville Ives at the Winter Olympics More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Central Otago is today moving to a prohibited fire season More...



     Today's News

    Entertainment:
    Paris Hilton and Carter Reum have renewed their wedding vows 8:17

    International:
    Donald Trump says he's considering a limited military strike on Iran to pile on the pressure for a nuclear deal 8:16

    General:
    To the Winter Olympics in Livigno.. 8:06

    Rugby:
    A positive update after a scary moment for skier Fin Melville Ives at the Winter Olympics 7:56

    Law and Order:
    Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's future uncertain under monarch willing to let 'the law take its course' 7:56

    Entertainment:
    Shia LaBeouf has been arrested in New Orleans following an alleged altercation during Mardi Gras celebrations 7:47

    Business:
    Central Otago is today moving to a prohibited fire season 7:46

    Business:
    Paintings, sculptures and murals will be on display on Auckland's waterfront over the next month 7:36

    Environment:
    Hurricanes returnee Josh Moorby has celebrated his first game back in Super Rugby in style in their campaign-opening win in Wellington 7:26

    Law and Order:
    Jeffrey Epstein's estate agrees to pay up to $US35 million to settle class action 7:26


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2026 New Zealand City Ltd