Washington ,US, October 12 : American actor Jada Pinkett Smith has revealed that she and her husband Will Smith have been living completely separate lives since 2016, People reported.
Pinkett Smith’s revelation comes ahead of the release of her new memoir ‘Worthy’.
The pair had got married in 1997 but live separately now and they do not plan to divorce.
Pinkett told People magazine that she remembered her husband storming the stage at the 2022 Academy Awards and slapping presenter Chris Rock when he made a joke about her shaven head. She has alopecia, which causes hair loss.
“I thought, ‘This is a skit. Not believing it was real at first, I was like, There’s no way that Will hit him’. It wasn’t until Will started to walk back to his chair that I even realized it wasn’t a skit,” Pinkett told People.
When they were alone backstage, Pinkett said her first words to Will were, “Are you okay?”
Pinkett Smith also discussed the couple’s split with NBC News’ Hoda Kotb on Today. She explained to Kotb that the pair had not previously made the announcement public because they were not “ready yet.”
Pinkett Smith also stated that “a lot of things” contributed to the breakup of the couple. By 2016, she explained, “we were just exhausted with trying.” I guess we were both still locked in our fantasy of what the other person should be.”
Smith and Pinkett Smith have been married since 1997. Pinkett Smith has stated that they are not legally divorced and have no plans to divorce.
She said she “made a promise” to Smith that there would never be a reason for them to divorce, “and I just haven’t been able to break that promise,” she said.
‘Worthy’, Pinkett Smith’s memoir is set to be released on October 17.