Will Smith Responds to Jada Pinkett Smith’s Revelations About Their Marriage
Will Smith has finally addressed Jada Pinkett Smith’s numerous claims about their marriage. In recent years, Pinkett Smith, 52, has shared several revelations about her life behind closed doors with the Oscar-winning actor, 55. The latest detail, shared in Pinkett Smith’s new memoir, is the fact that she has been “separated” from Smith for seven years.
Pinkett Smith unveiled this revelation while expressing her shock that Smith had referred to her as his “wife” while defending her against a Chris Rock joke at the 2022 Oscars. The incident ended with Smith hitting Rock in the face on stage.
During an interview with People magazine to promote her forthcoming memoir, Pinkett Smith revealed that although they are not legally divorced, they have been living separately since 2016.
Smith has now publicly supported Pinkett Smith once again, this time through an on-the-record statement to The New York Times, who interviewed Pinkett Smith. According to the outlet, Smith said that Pinkett Smith’s memoir, titled “Worthy,” had opened his eyes and made him realize that she is more resilient, clever, and compassionate than he had understood.
Smith elaborated, saying, “When you’ve been with someone for more than half of your life, a sort of emotional blindness sets in, and you can all too easily lose your sensitivity to their hidden nuances and subtle beauties.”
Smith and Pinkett Smith got married in 1997 after Smith divorced actor Sheree Zampino two years earlier. The couple first met when Pinkett Smith auditioned for a role as Smith’s character’s girlfriend on the 1990s series “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.”
Rumors about the couple having an open relationship began circulating after Pinkett Smith told The Huffington Post in 2013, “Will is his own man. I’m here as his partner, but he is his own man.” She further explained her stance during an interview with Howard Stern in 2015, stating, “At the end of the day, I’m not here to be anybody’s watcher. I trust that Will is a man of integrity. So, he’s got all the freedom in the world.”
After continued rumors about their relationship, Pinkett Smith clarified the nature of their partnership in a Facebook post, writing, “Will and I BOTH can do WHATEVER we want because we TRUST each other to do so. This does NOT mean we have an open relationship… this means we have a GROWN one.”
In 2020, singer August Alsina claimed that Smith had given him his “blessing” to have a relationship with Pinkett Smith. Pinkett Smith later admitted to having an “entanglement” with Alsina while she and her husband were “separated amicably.”
Smith and Pinkett Smith have two children together, Jaden Smith, who was born in 1998, and Willow, who was born in 2000.
Pinkett Smith’s memoir, “Worthy,” will be published on Tuesday, October 17th.