Jada Pinkett Smith Confirms Future of Her and Will Smith’s Marriage After Separation Revelation
Jada Pinkett Smith revealed whether she and Will Smith plan to divorce more than one month after sharing the news of their seven-year separation, and the odds are in their favor.
Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith are in it for the long haul.
The Red Table Talk host, who revealed last month she and the Independence Day star have been separated since 2016, has officially put an end to any speculation about where their marriage stands going forward.
“We’re staying together forever,” Jada confirmed in a preview of her Nov. 28 appearance on the Drew Barrymore Show, via Entertainment Weekly, adding of her and Will’s separation, “I tried. We tried.”
Jada—whose tell-all memoir, Worthy, delves into the ups and downs of her marriage with Will—admitted she considered filing for divorce but ultimately decided against it.
“I made a promise that there will never be a reason for us to get a divorce,” she said in the Oct. 13 NBC News Special, Jada’s Story. “We will work through whatever, and I just haven’t been able to break that promise.”
As for why the Girls Trip star, who had previously spoken about her and Will’s marital difficulties on her former Facebook Watch show, waited until now to reveal details about their separation? Well, it all comes down to them not being ready yet.
“Still trying to figure out between the two of us how to be in partnership,” she explained. “In regards to, how do we present that to people? We hadn’t figured that out.”
Barry King/Getty ImagesWill, meanwhile, shared insight into their current dynamic when he appeared alongside their kids Jaden, 25, Willow, 23, and his son with ex Sheree Zampino, Trey, 31, at her Baltimore book event in October.
The Oscar winner described their relationship as “very long and tumultuous” over the last 30 years. “We call it ‘brutiful,'” according to the Baltimore Banner. “It was brutal and beautiful at the same time.”
In fact, despite the current scrutiny over where he and Jada, who wed in 1997, stand, the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor is happier than ever.
“I have achieved every single thing I have ever wanted in my entire life,” he said. “There is not one thing left that I desire in this world—all of the awards, all of the money, the family—everything I’ve ever dreamed.”
The duo’s high-profile romance has led to some head-turning moments over the years. Keep reading for some of Jada and Will’s wildest quotes about each other.
Jason Merritt/Getty Images“We don’t even say we’re married anymore. We refer to ourselves as ‘life partners,’ where you get into that space where you realize you are literally with somebody for the rest of your life,” Will Smith said during an interview with TIDAL’s Rap Radar podcast. “There’s no deal breakers. There’s nothing she could do—ever—nothing that would break our relationship. She has my support till death, and it feels so good to get to that space.”
David Livingston/Getty ImagesRumor Patrol
“I’ve heard all the things—their marriage is not real, he’s gay, she’s gay, they swing. But at the end of the day, people have to believe what they have to believe. I’ll tell you what, it’s too hard to be in a pretend marriage. Life’s too short for that one.” — Jada Pinkett Smith on Atlanta’s Q100
Steve Granitz/WireImage“There’s really not a secret per se. If you don’t get divorced that year, you get to add one more year to your marriage.” — Will Smith to E! News
Facebook“Should we be married to individuals who can not be responsible for themselves and their families within their freedom? Should we be in relationships with individuals who we can not entrust to their own values, integrity, and LOVE…for us??? Here is how I will change my statement…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.” — Jada Pinkett Smith on Facebook.
Steve Granitz/FilmMagicParent of the Year
“I’m not gonna be silly. I’m here to honor you. Just watching the piece with the kids it just takes me back to when we made them. Can’t help but think about that. It’s just amazing. It’s like you take Jada Pinkett Smith and an obscure town in Mexico and some tequila and you end up with great kids!” — Will Smith at Vh1’s Dear Mama Event
Alberto Rodriguez/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images“You gotta trust who you’re with, and at the end of the day, I’m not here to be anybody’s watcher. I’m not his watcher. He’s a grown man. I trust that the man that Will is is a man of integrity. HE’s got all the freedom in the world, and as long as Will can look at himself in the mirror and be OK, I’m good.” —Jada Pinkett Smith on The Howard Stern Show
Theo Wargo/Getty Images“In the interest of redundant, repetitious, over & over-again-ness… Jada and I are…NOT GETTING A DIVORCE!!!!!!!!!!!!! : -) I promise you all – if I ever decide to divorce my Queen – I SWEAR I’ll tell you myself! #Dumb People Should Have to Wear Scarlet D’s.” — Will Smith on Facebook
Jesse Grant/Getty Images for NAACP Image Awards“I never thought about being married or having a family. I didn’t know anything about that because I came from a single mom so I always though I’d be a single mom and have a career. Then I found this beautiful man, Will. I got married to him and I got my bonus son Trey and then I got Jaden and I got Willow and I was able to create, for myself, something I never had—which means family.” — Jada Pinkett Smith at Vh1’s Dear Mama Event
Jason Kempin/Getty Images for The Clara Lionel Foundation“She is just absolutely hardcore, like she absolutely is unfazed by the weight and the pressures of life. She is so calm and cool and easy in any situation. She can bear anything, and I just love that about her.” — Will Smith to People
Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images“If you really want to know, I’m thankful for the Hollywood scrutiny, that that’s my problem. There are mothers out there losing their sons, their husbands, their daughters. I’m blessed. So scrutinize me. I’ll take that any day over what the majority of my people are dealing with on a daily basis. I dare not complain.” — Jada Pinkett Smith to American Way magazine
Lionel Hahn / Getty ImagesLoyal to the End
“He’s been by my side through some of the most difficult parts of my life. And so that’s something you can never take away. A lot of other things, you never know, other things might change…but one thing is for sure: I love him deeply and he is my best friend.” — Jada Pinkett Smith
