Ariana Grande is past the halfway mark of filming Jon M. Chu’s forthcoming two-part Wicked film adaptation, and she’s unfortunately experiencing the horror film that is being a woman in pop: Seeing speculation about her love life play out publicly.
It was first reported by TMZ on Monday, July 17, that Grande and her husband of two years, Dalton Gomez, “have been separated since January” and are “headed toward divorce.”
People separately confirmed the news, citing an unnamed source who relayed Grande and Gomez “have been quietly and lovingly working on their friendship.”
According to TMZ on Thursday morning, Grande “recently started dating” her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater. The outlet noted that Gomez has “been dating as well,” and Grande didn’t strike up anything romantic with Slater “until after he separated” from Lilly Jay, his wife since 2018.
People exclusively reported perceived reasons for Grande’s split from Gomez, a 27-year-old real estate agent. The root is said to be Grande’s Wicked commitment in the UK, where she’s fulfilling her lifelong dream of portraying Glinda.
“He is super focused on his career and needs to live in Los Angeles,” an unnamed source described as an “insider” told the publication. “It’s definitely been an issue for them. Dalton’s career is demanding, and he can’t leave Los Angeles often. So when [Grande] started filming Wicked in England, they were in for a long-distance marriage.”
TMZ’s sources conveyed similar fractures in the relationship:
“When Covid restrictions lifted, we’re told their differences became alarmingly apparent. Dalton, an LA realtor, was taken aback by Ariana’s celebrity. He had not dealt with her schedule, the paparazzi and the various opportunities that took her out of LA.
We’re told Dalton would sometimes question why they needed to go around town with security, something that was a must for Ariana. Their differences started to make the marriage unravel, and it was greatly exacerbated when she went to England last December to begin filming Wicked.”
None of the involved parties have publicly commented on the (alleged) matter, but Grande did post to Instagram after attending Wimbledon last week. See it below.