The evil star suffers a painful fall at the rainy London premiere

On By Littum

Ethan Slater, Marissa Bode, Jeff Goldblum, Jonathan Bailey, Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Bowen Yang, Karis Musongole and Bronwyn James stand together at the Wicked premiere against a sparkling green backdrop
Ethan Slater had a slightly awkward moment at the Wicked premiere (Image: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

Ethan Slater, Ariana Grande’s boyfriend, had a smooth moment at the London premiere of Evil.

The highly-anticipated event, held at the Royal Festival Hall, saw Slater and the rest of the Wicked cast walk the green carpet amid a classic London downpour.

The 32-year-old actor, best known for originating the title role in SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical, was greeted by cheering fans as he entered the venue.

But the rain-soaked floor became dangerous, causing Slater to lose his footing and briefly defy gravity.

Caught on video by fans, Slater slipped and began to fall backwards while twirling his arms in a manner that can only be described as cartoonish.

He managed to catch himself before he hit the ground, narrowly avoiding what could have been an embarrassing or even harmful incident.

The crowd gasped, but Slater quickly calmed them down, flashing a wide grin and giving a thumbs up to assure everyone he was unharmed.

The heart-stopping moment did not go unnoticed on social media, with fans uploading footage of the incident to platforms such as TikTok.

Many users couldn’t help but tie the near miss back to Slater’s iconic Broadway role, and wonder how SpongeBob might have handled the situation.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock (14916402gk) Ethan Slater 'Wicked' Film Premiere, Royal Festival Hall, London, UK - November 18, 2024
Slater recovered from the stumble and looked dapper on the green carpet (Image: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock)

k_younggg wrote: ‘Can someone edit this with spongebob shoe sounds.’

alexbeenlikethis wrote: ‘This is so Spongebob coded.’

Others were impressed with how gracefully Slater captured herself, while influencer Trisha Paytas wrote: ‘Wait he’s so graceful how’

taylorswiftjetfuel wrote: ‘Omg he caught himself so effortlessly.’

Wicked the movie musical, starring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey alongside Slater, has received rave reviews.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock (14916402st) Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande 'Wicked' Film Premiere, Royal Festival Hall, London, UK - November 18, 2024
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande looked witchy and fabulous at the star-studded event
(Image: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock)

Metro’s own film reviewer Tori Brazier wrote: ‘The Wicked Movie Musical has flown past my lofty expectations with the undeniable quality of its scope, vision and imagination – that’s exactly how you adapt a stage show to the big screen.

“To build this on such a remarkable foundation as it does, thanks to the towering talent of its cast and creatives, means it doesn’t put a foot wrong.”

Erivo and Grande looked stunning at the premiere in Glinda and Elphaba-inspired looks – and managed to avoid tripping or falling.

Set before the 1939 Judy Garland movie we all know and love, Wicked picks up when Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo) meets Ariana’s Galinda Upland at Shiz University.

This photo released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande, with director Jon M. Chu, right, on the set of the film
The film has been met with rave reviews (Image: AP)

Wicked tells the story of Elphaba and Galinda’s unlikely friendship and explains how Elphaba came to be known as the Wicked Witch – complete with some of the best and most memorable songs in musical theater history.

The film’s production received massive media attention in 2023 when Ariana and Ethan met on the London set and began dating.

It was later confirmed that both Wicked stars had left their former partners, with the pair’s divorces both finalized earlier this year ahead of the film’s big reveal.

As a result, there’s been tons of interest in Ethan, who was previously only really known among Broadway enthusiasts — meaning it really was the slip that’s been seen around the world.

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