Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have been divorced for seven years

A slap in the face overshadowed the Oscars in 2022. Comedian Chris Rock joked live on television about actress Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head. The presenter was then punched by Will Smith, actor and husband of Jada Pinkett Smith. “Don’t put my wife’s name in your damn mouth!” the 55-year-old said at the time as he returned to his seat.

Now, a year and a half later, Jada Pinkett Smith revealed a surprising detail. At the time of the Oscar scandal, she and her husband had long been divorced, but the two still appeared as a couple. The two tied the knot in 1997.

In an interview with People magazine, she said of the status quo of her marriage: “We’re still figuring it out.” She further reveals that they were separated for six years before the Oscars. And yet: “We really did a lot together. We just have a deep love for each other and we’re going to figure out what that looks like for us.”

Jada Pinkett Smith also commented on the shocking incident itself, which resulted in Will Smith being banned from all Academy events for ten years. “I thought, ‘This is a skit.'” Like many people who saw the incident live on television, she initially didn’t believe it was real. “I thought, ‘There’s no way Will is going to hit him,’” she recalls. “It wasn’t until Will went back to his seat that I realized it wasn’t a skit.” When they were alone after the show, she asked him, “Are you okay?”

The answer to that is still a work in progress. Will Smith received an Oscar that evening – as best actor in the film ‘King Richard’. The drama was also honored with a Golden Boy award. But that all faded into the background that evening.