Psychologist Lily Jay speaks out about the “sudden public fall” of her marriage, a year after her divorce from actor Ethan Slater and romance with Wicked co-star Ariana Grande became tabloid fodder I’m taking responsibility.
“I tell myself this is nothing to be ashamed of or hide,” Jay wrote in an essay published Thursday in The Cut. “Slowly but surely, I came to believe that even though the life I had planned with my high school sweetheart was gone, there was still a sweet life for me and my kids.”
In his essay, Jay speaks candidly to the public and to his patients in therapy about how “the windows into my life were pried open.” In the summer of 2023, pop divas Grande and Slater sparked dating rumors shortly after news broke of “Yes, And?” The singer had divorced real estate broker Dalton Gomez after two years of marriage.
Grande and Slater, the Tony-nominated Broadway stars best known for the musical “SpongeBob SquarePants,” began filming the first half of director Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked” in the U.K. in early 2023. The movie stars Grande as Glinda and Slater as me. , Munchkin’s friend from Shizu University.
Jay didn’t name Slater and Grande, but revealed that she and her two-month-old child (they’re due for a baby in late 2022) and ex-husband “moved to another country” to “support his career.” Ta. At the time, she says, “I didn’t understand how the distance between us was shrinking.”
The same month that news broke of Grande and Gomez’s split, Slater filed for divorce from Jay.
Her essay doesn’t delve into too much detail about Slater and Grande’s relationship or how it turned out, but she says she and her ex-husband remain fully committed to co-parenting their son, whom she loves “fiercely.” states. The ex-lovers finalized their divorce in September, after months of an intense promotional campaign for the movie “Wicked,” starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba.
While spending time with her boys brings her light and joy, Jay writes, “It’s a dark day when I can’t escape the promotion of a movie related to the saddest day of my life.”
Director Chu’s first “Wicked” film opened with $114 million at the domestic box office and has been garnering awards season attention ever since. The second film, titled “Wicked: For Good,” is scheduled for release in November 2025, with the potential (and perhaps space) for an even more ubiquitous and viral promotional campaign. It’s clear that it will take some time for the magic of Wicked to fade from Hollywood.
In her essay, Jay also considers whether headlines about her divorce have affected her career opportunities and relationships with patients. Eventually, Jay writes, she came to accept her place in the public eye and hopes her experience will benefit her therapy work.
“Telling patients that avoidance will perpetuate their fear allows them to hear themselves,” she writes. “And maybe it’s time to accept that I’m no longer an unknown.”
Jay also apologized to her patients that her public clash with Slater destroyed the boundaries she had worked so hard to maintain, reminding them that they are “much stronger” than they realize. Remind me.
She continued: It’s yours to protect and advance. ”
