13 Oct – In a twist that nobody asked, Jada Pinkett Smith revealed that she and husband Will Smith have actually been separated for six years now. The actress, who was the subject that caused Will Smith to go on stage at the 2022 Oscars and gave Chris Rock a slap that was heard around the world, shared as much with Hoda Kotb in an upcoming NBC News primetime special to promote her new memoir, "Worthy".
Kotb reiterated a part of the book in which Jada stated that she and Will decided to live separately in 2016, describing it "not a divorce on paper, but a divorce".
When Kotb asked directly why the couple hadn't previously shared their relationship status, the actress stated that the two of them were not ready. "[We were] still trying to figure out between the two of us how to be in partnership, right? In regards to, how do we present that to people, you know? And we hadn't figured that out," she said. Asked how the relationship fractured, Jada stated that a lot of things were involved. "By the time we got to 2016, we were just exhausted with trying. I think we were both kind of just still stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person should be," she explained, adding that she hadn't been able to get through with a legal divorce. The couple tied the knot in 1997 after meeting on the set of "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air". They are parents to actor Jaden Smith and singer Willow Smith.