Jada Pinkett Smith says Will Smith hadn't called her 'wife' for years before Oscars slap
Will Smith made headlines around the world when he slapped Chris Rock in defence of Jada Pinkett Smith, but she's now admitted they were in fact separated during the infamous incident.
The Men In Black star, 55, stormed onstage during the 2022 Oscars and slapped host Chris across the face after the comedian made a joke about Jada's alopecia. After returning to his seat, Will shouted: "Keep my wife's name out of your f**king mouth!"
It was a shocking incident for many, including Jada, who has now revealed Will hadn't referred to her as his wife in years before the now-infamous slap. "We haven't called each other husband and wife in a long time," she admitted.
Speaking to Hoda Kotb in a preview of her explosive NBC interview, Jada admitted she was "really worried" for Will because she didn't know what was happening at the Academy Awards. She also said it was "ridiculous how far it went" as people accused her of telling Will to react to Chris.
"But I also understood at the same time. Considering the false narrative that I had cheated on Will or I was like some adulteress, Will had never done that before," she added.
Jada continued: "I think that when we just look at human nature... when you look at the breadcrumbs, people need something to blame. And so people not knowing what was happening behind the scenes, I surely wasn’t surprised that I got blamed."
However, Jada insisted she didn't hold it against anyone as she said: "I understood that that’s just the human nature of it all." The talk show host also admitted that thought the slap was initially a joke.
During the interview, she said: "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 realised it wasn’t a skit." She said that the first words she uttered to her husband after the slap was: "Are you okay?'"
After the altercation, Will was awarded Best Actor for his role in the sports drama King Richard. After receiving the prestigious honour, he was later banned from attending Academy events for 10 years for his inappropriate behaviour.
