While Cynthia Erivo and Lena Waithe’s relationship has been one of the more subtly joyous moments in the 2025 award season lineup thanks to their low-key appearances at the Golden Globes, Grammys and more.
Erivo and Waithe first met in 2018 but didn’t go public with their relationship until 2022 after their close friendship turned into something more.
The Wicked press tour has generated plenty of scrutiny for Erivo’s co-stars Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater, who went public with their romance in July 2023 after being together on set. The relationship led fans to speculate that Grande cheated on her ex-husband Dalton Gomez with Slater, who was married to ex-wife, Lilly Jay.
But while Grande’s relationship has received its fair share of public attention, Erivo’s relationship with Waithe has been under some scrutiny too. Take a look at their relationship (and the rumors surrounding it) below!
Cynthia Erivo & Lena Waithe Met in 2018
Erivo and Waithe met for the very first time at the 2018 Met Gala. At the time, Waithe was engaged to film executive Alana Mayo.
“I finally found my sis,” Erivo wrote on Instagram in May 2018 alongside a selfie with the Masters of None star at the Met Gala. “Lena you are absolutely everything. You are perfection. What a meeting of minds, glad to have you in my life! Stuck like glue !!! SHINE QUEEN SHINE!!”
Waithe later reflected on their first meeting and the friendship they formed in a January 2020 interview with Variety at the Palm Springs Film Festival where she presented Erivo with an award.
“The first time I met her was at the Met Gala, which is where all the cool kids go to meet each other,” Waithe said in the January 2 red carpet appearance. “I had seen her in The Color Purple twice, I remember seeing her on TV when Oprah [Winfrey] talked about doing it and her being on the screen, I remember [thinking], ‘Who is this tiny person with a British accent?’ We’ve just been vibing ever since.”
Lena Waithe talks meeting and “vibing” with Cynthia Erivo, who she’s presenting an award to at the #PalmSpringsFilmFestival gala pic.twitter.com/W3nFgolo10
— Variety (@Variety) January 3, 2020
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Waithe & Erivo Grew Closer From 2018 to 2020
After connecting at the Met Gala, Waithe and Erivo become close friends and regularly act as each other’s plus ones at industry events.
Their outings include the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Grants Banquet in August 2018, the NAACP Image Awards in March 2019, and both the Palms Springs International Film Festival and Variety’s Creative Impact Awards and 10 Directors to Watch Event in January 2020.
Waithe Split From Wife Alana Mayo in January 2020
Weeks after presenting Erivo with an award at the Palms Springs International Film Festival, Waithe and Mayo announced their separation on January 22. The split came just two months after the Queen and Slim writer revealed she had secretly married Mayo, after three years of dating, in a private San Francisco ceremony.
“After careful thought and consideration, we have decided to part ways,” they said in a statement to People. “We have nothing but support for one another and ask that you respect our privacy during this time.”
Erivo and Waithe continue to hang out publicly, posing together at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in February 2020, attending the BET Awards together in June 2021 and sitting together at the Grammys in April 2022.
Waithe Was Accused of Cheating on Her Ex-Wife With Erivo
While Erivo and Waithe only went public with their relationship in May 2022, some gossip sites speculated without evidence that these two were dating as far back as January 2020 while Waithe was still married to Mayo.
In the weeks leading up to Waithe and Mayo’s breakup, Waithe and Erivo were seen together at the Palm Spring Film Festival and at a Golden Globes after-party in January 2020. Later that month, after Waithe and Mayo announced their split, a source accused Waithe of cheating on the celebrity tabloid site Bossip.
“Even after they married, Lena was still buying designer gifts — Chanel, Gucci — for other women,” the source alleged. Erivo and Waithe have not addressed these rumors.
When Did Erivo & Waithe Start Dating?
In May 2022, Erivo seemingly made her relationship with Waithe public by posting a tribute on Instagram. “Today is when we celebrate a woman whose heart is bigger than the body that houses it,” Erivo wrote in the caption. “Happy birthday @lenawaithe I ……. You know the rest! 💕💕”
A few months later, in June, their romance was confirmed after Page Six photographers spotted them holding hands at the Alvin Ailey Spirit Gala.
However, the pair attended several events together as far back as January 2020, including Variety’s 2020 Creative Impact Awards, the 2021 BET Awards and the 2022 Oscars.
Erivo Came Out as Queer in July 2022
While Waithe had already been in an open and public queer relationship in the past, Erivo come out to fans as queer in a British Vogue interview in July 2022. “My closest friends have known this of me for a long time,” she told the outlet. “I feel like I knew it when I was around 15 but didn’t know what to call it. I didn’t have the vocabulary for it. I knew I was attracted to both men and women. I was attracted to people. I’d have a crush on this person or that person but didn’t know how to put it in words.”
Soon enough, she found the right words and found herself. “For me, it means taking a risk to claim the freedom of being one’s full self,” she said.
Waithe Supported Erivo During Wicked Promo in 2024
At the Wicked premiere on Nov. 9, Waithe attended in support. Plus, she was wearing green, a sweet nod to Erivo’s character Elphaba.
On Nov. 18, they attended the after-party for the London premiere together, Just Jared reports.
On Instagram, Waithe has also shown her support throughout the Wicked press tour, reposting reviews praising Wicked, celebrity reactions to the musical, and Erivo’s post from Nov. 22 in which she reflected on working on the film.
Waithe Joined Erivo at the Golden Globes & Grammys in 2025
While Erivo has been shining on her own in red carpet photos, Waithe has been seen with the Oscar-nominee inside many of 2025’s most prestigious award shows. Waithe sat with Erivo and Grande at the Golden Globes on January 5 and, on February 2, joined her inside the Grammys.
Before you go, click here to see more co-star couples we’ll always wonder about.
