Ethan Slater’s ex-wife Lilly Jay bared it all in a tell-all essay for The Cut in which she described the end of her marriage as ‘one of the saddest days of my life’. She also spoke about heartbreak following the highly-publicised relationship Ethan had with Wicked co-star Ariana Grande after their separation. (Also Read: Ariana Grande rules out tour ‘anytime soon’ after Wicked sequel announcement)
Lilly Jay on the end of her marriage
In the emotional essay, Lilly—a clinical psychologist—wrote about how she was married to Ethan for six years and shared a two-year-old son, as per People. The couple were high school sweethearts, and Lilly moved to the UK in 2022 to support Ethan as he filmed for Wicked there and played Boq.
Reflecting on the collapse of their marriage, Lilly wrote that the days she can’t escape the ‘promotion of a movie’ associated with the ‘saddest days’ of her life are ‘darker’. Lilly had moved to the UK when their son was only 2 months old. She writes about being ‘consumed’ by the ‘magic and mundanity of new motherhood’ to understand their distance.
The psychologist wrote about how despite it all, she finds joy in motherhood, writing, “Days with my son are sunny. Motherhood, I have learned, fills your time but not your mind. Both of us fiercely love our son 100 percent of the time, regardless of how our parenting time is divided.”
Lilly also acknowledges that she misses the anonymity she once had, writing, “In this season of shock and mourning, over a year after the end of my marriage was made public, I deeply miss the life of invisibility I created for myself as a psychologist specializing in women’s mental health.”
She also added that she ‘never’ thought she would divorce her childhood sweetheart after the birth of their first child, writing, “And especially not in the shadow of my husband’s new relationship with a celebrity.”
Ethan Slater’s romance with Ariana Grande
Ethan and Ariana’s romance has been under intense scrutiny since it became public in 2023. When this news broke, Ethan was married to Lilly, and Ariana was married to Dalton Gomez.
While the pair have often faced backlash, they have also defended their relationship. Lilly revealing her side of the story has resulted in fresh backlash for the couple.
Ariana announced her separation from Dalton days before Ethan filed for divorce from Lilly. Ethan and Ariana recently starred together in Wicked, released in India on November 22.