Actress Jada Pinkett Smith revealed Wednesday that she has been separated from her husband Will Smith since 2016, while the couple is regularly at the center of media attention. The Smiths particularly hit the headlines in 2022, when the actor of the “Men in Black” saga slapped comedian Chris Rock on the Oscars stage, because of a questionable joke concerning his wife’s hair loss .
Banned from the Oscars for ten years, after having resigned from the Academy himself, Will Smith publicly apologized to Chris Rock. In 2022, the couple, who remain legally married, had already been living “completely separate lives” for years, Jada Pinkett Smith explained to NBC, according to an excerpt from the interview which aims to promote the upcoming memoir of the actress, titled “Worthy”.
Rumors of adultery
The actress also explained that she initially thought it was a joke when her husband hit Chris Rock and did not understand the violence of his reaction. The couple had faced persistent rumors of adultery or open marriage for years.
“We have a deep love for each other and we’re trying to figure out what that means to us,” Jada Pinkett Smith explained in another interview with People magazine.
The two celebrities met in 1994 on the set of the series “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” when Will Smith was already married. They have two children together, Jaden and Willow.