Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith were separate for 7 years (Photo Credit – Instagram)
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Yep, the seemingly perfect Hollywood power couple, Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith had been navigating their relationship from afar since 2016. The revelation came during an interview, with Jada later elaborating on a talk show. She admitted, “By the time we got to 2016, we were just exhausted with trying.”
Their split wasn’t official on paper, but as Jada described in her new book, “It was a divorce.” Still, no legal documents were filed because of her promise to Will. “I promised that there will never be a reason for us to get a divorce,” she said.
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This candid confession spotlighted their unconventional dynamic. Jada disclosed that they were still figuring out the future of their relationship. “We’ve been doing some heavy-duty work together,” she shared, emphasizing their enduring love and commitment to finding their way forward.
Surprisingly, they were already living apart when Will’s infamous Oscars moment happened in 2022. That’s right—the shocking slap that dominated headlines occurred during their separation. At the 94th Academy Awards, Will confronted Chris Rock on stage over a joke about Jada’s alopecia. Minutes later, he tearfully accepted his Best Actor Oscar, confessing, “Love makes you do crazy things,” but he skipped an apology to Rock.
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And the drama doesn’t stop there. In July 2020, Jada’s Red Table Talk confession about her “entanglement” with August Alsina made waves. She admitted to a relationship with the singer during a rough patch in her marriage, describing it as a friendship that evolved when she and Will were “basically broken up.” The term “entanglement” even inspired Alsina’s track Shake the World.
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But Jada’s revelations didn’t just center on her marriage. Her new book dives into more profound struggles, from battling depression to confronting long-buried trauma. “On paper, it all looked grand,” she reflected, but behind the scenes, she was grappling with despair, PTSD, and dissociation. Therapy helped, but it wasn’t enough to fully heal the pain that shadowed her seemingly picture-perfect life.
Her children—Jaden, Willow, and Trey—became her anchors during this stormy period. “They’re little gurus,” Jada said, crediting them with teaching her self-acceptance. But even their love couldn’t fill the void she felt.
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Jada and Will’s relationship timeline may not follow the Hollywood script, but it’s a raw, honest, and evolving love story. From secret separations to public entanglements, they’ve weathered storms that few could imagine. Their journey continues, proving that love—no matter how messy—still finds its way.
