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Jonathan Bailey withdraws from West End musical following Ariana Grande's exit

Jonathan Bailey has announced he is stepping back from the West End production of 'Sunday in the Park with George', weeks after co-star Ariana Grande withdrew. The show is still set to open next summer at London's Barbican Centre, with casting discussions underway.

By Tertius News AI Desk 2 distinct · 2 mastheads · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage Sep 1, 2026 Published 4h ago

Jonathan Bailey has announced he is withdrawing from the upcoming West End production of "Sunday in the Park with George," a month after his co-star Ariana Grande exited the show. The actor, who was set to play painter George Seurat, shared the news on Instagram Stories, citing his support for Grande, who he called one of his dearest friends.

"Ari is one of my dearest friends, and my support for her is unwavering," Bailey wrote. "After much consideration, I have decided to also step back from 'Sunday in the Park with George.'"

Bailey praised the production's director, Marianne Elliott, calling her "extraordinary" and one of his longest collaborators. He described the musical as a "real passion project" and expressed excitement about seeing what the actors who will now take on the roles of George and Dot will create with the production.

The show, based on the art of Georges Seurat, was scheduled to open next summer at the Barbican Centre in London. Bailey and Grande had been set to star as the painter George Seurat and his mistress Dot, respectively.

The two actors previously worked together on the 2024 film "Wicked" and its sequel "Wicked: For Good," with Grande portraying Glinda and Bailey as Prince Fiyero.

Following Bailey's announcement, Empire Street Productions, the show's producer, confirmed that the production will proceed as planned. In a statement, the company said that casting discussions are "actively underway" and that the creative team is reshaping the production around a new company while preserving the ambition and artistic integrity of Stephen Sondheim's work.

Grande's earlier exit

Grande announced her withdrawal from the production in August. Her spokesperson said at the time that she was "taking a step back from visibility" due to "endless, ongoing public scrutiny." The singer also paused a concert in Chicago on August 3 to address her decision directly with fans.

Grande's tour, the Eternal Sunshine Tour, concludes in London on Tuesday night (March 26). Reports indicate that an insider said Grande plans to spend her time away from the limelight with family, friends, and her boyfriend Ricky Alvarez, whom she previously dated from 2015 to 2016. A source said the couple had not been able to spend much time together recently.

The scrutiny that prompted Grande's decision has included body-shaming comments following the release of her "Petal" music video in July. During her earlier concert pause, Grande referenced the lyrics of her song "Yes, And?" about not commenting on her body.

Bailey's other projects

Bailey is currently working on an untitled film directed by John Lee Hancock and is in pre-production for the psychological sports thriller "Pumping Black," which also stars Natalie Portman.

How each outlet told it

A framing line is our reading of that outlet's own text — an interpretation, not a quotation and not a fact we assert. Check it against what the outlet published.

Page Six

Framing: Highlights Bailey's exit in relation to Grande's departure, implying a connection

as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Jonathan Bailey announced he was dropping out of the West End musical 'Sunday in the Park with George'
Ariana Grande's departure from the musical weeks earlier
Bailey's quote: 'Ari is one of my dearest friends, and my support for her is unwavering'
Bailey was set to portray George Seurat and Grande was to play Dot
The musical is scheduled for summer 2027 at London's Barbican Centre
They previously worked together on 'Wicked' and 'Wicked: For Good'
Bailey is currently working on an untitled John Lee Hancock-directed film
Bailey is in pre-production for 'Pumping Black' with Natalie Portman
Grande announced her departure in August, citing a break from public life after her tour ends
Grande won't appear in Season 13 of 'American Horror Story'
Grande's spokesperson commented on her need for a break due to 'endless, ongoing public scrutiny'
Grande faced body-shaming comments since her 'Petal' music video in July
An insider said Grande will spend time with family, friends, and boyfriend Ricky Alvarez
The couple dated from 2015 to 2016
A source mentioned Grande and Ricky haven't had much time together recently

Read the source article →

PerthNow

Framing: Jonathan Bailey's withdrawal is framed as an act of support for Ariana Grande's decision to pull out — Sympathetic and neutral, focusing on personal support and professional continuity

as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC

Facts Included:

Jonathan Bailey has pulled out of Sunday in the Park with George
Ariana Grande withdrew from the show a month earlier
The production is scheduled to open next summer at the Barbican Centre in London
Ariana Grande's Eternal Sunshine Tour concludes in London on Tuesday night (March 26)
Bailey cited his support for Ariana, his 'dearest friend', and her decision to 'step back from visibility'
Bailey praised director Marianne Elliott as 'extraordinary'
Empire Street Productions confirmed the show will go ahead and casting discussions are underway
Ariana's spokesperson said she is 'taking a step back from visibility' due to 'endless, ongoing public scrutiny'
Ariana previously paused her concert in Chicago on August 3 to address her decision
Ariana referenced her song 'Yes, And?' lyrics about not commenting on her body

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

AI-extracted; can misattribute a claim — see Methodology.

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status is Contested when two claims on this page negate each other; otherwise it counts the distinct outlets we found asserting that specific claim — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimJonathan Bailey announced he was dropping out of the West End musical 'Sunday in the Park with George'.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source (2 outlets · 2 distinct) via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC, PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande withdrew from 'Sunday in the Park with George' weeks before Jonathan Bailey's announcement.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source (2 outlets · 2 distinct) via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC, PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey wrote: 'Ari is one of my dearest friends, and my support for her is unwavering.'	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source (2 outlets · 2 distinct) via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC, PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey was set to portray George Seurat and Ariana Grande was set to play Dot in 'Sunday in the Park with George'.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimThe production of 'Sunday in the Park with George' is scheduled to open next summer at the Barbican Centre in London.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source (2 outlets · 2 distinct) via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC, Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey and Ariana Grande previously worked together on 'Wicked' and 'Wicked: For Good'.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey is currently working on an untitled John Lee Hancock-directed film.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey is in pre-production for the film 'Pumping Black' with Natalie Portman.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande announced her withdrawal from 'Sunday in the Park with George' in August.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande's spokesperson said she is 'taking a step back from visibility' due to 'endless, ongoing public scrutiny'.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source (2 outlets · 2 distinct) via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC, PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande will not appear in Season 13 of 'American Horror Story'.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande faced body-shaming comments since the release of her 'Petal' music video in July.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source (2 outlets · 2 distinct) via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC, PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimAn insider said Ariana Grande will spend her time away from the limelight with family, friends, and boyfriend Ricky Alvarez.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande and Ricky Alvarez dated from 2015 to 2016.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimA source said Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez haven't been able to spend much time together recently.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via Page Six as of Sep 1, 2026, 7:46 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey's withdrawal from 'Sunday in the Park with George' came a month after Ariana Grande withdrew from the show.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande's Eternal Sunshine Tour concludes in London on Tuesday night (01.09.26).	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey cited his support for Ariana, his 'dearest friend', and her decision to 'step back from visibility' as reasons for his withdrawal.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimJonathan Bailey praised director Marianne Elliott as 'extraordinary'.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimEmpire Street Productions confirmed the show 'Sunday in the Park with George' will go ahead and casting discussions are underway.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande previously paused her concert in Chicago on August 3 to address her decision to step back from public life.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC
ClaimAriana Grande referenced her song 'Yes, And?' lyrics about not commenting on her body.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via PerthNow as of Sep 1, 2026, 11:48 PM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

2 distinct · 2 mastheads · 2 articles consulted: Page Six, PerthNow 22 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-09-01