Jada Pinkett Smith has revealed that she and Will Smith have been separated since 2016.
Pinkett Smith, who writes of the split in her new memoir, Worthy, discussed the fact that she and Smith "live separately" during an interview with NBC's Today on Wednesday.
The Hollywood Reporter says that Pinkett Smith told Today's Hoda Kotb that the separation is essentially a "divorce", as she and Smith are no longer involved romantically.
When asked why the A-listers did not reveal the news earlier, Pinkett Smith said they weren't "ready yet".
"[We were] still trying to figure out between the two of us how to be in partnership, right? And in regards to how do we present that to people," she continued. "And we hadn't figured that out."
Pinkett Smith said "a lot of things" caused the separation.
"I think by the time we got to 2016, we were just exhausted with trying," she explained. "I think we were both kind of just still stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person should be."
She added that she considered a divorce but "made a promise that there will never be a reason for us to get a divorce".
"We will work through whatever. And I just haven't been able to break that promise," she said.
The marriage between Pinkett Smith and Smith has long been the subject of much speculation.
Pinkett Smith previously denied they had an open relationship, and speculation about the state of their marriage reached fever pitch in 2020, when Pinkett Smith revealed an "entanglement" with singer August Alsina.
Pinkett Smith and Smith married in December 1997 and have two adult children together, Jaden, 25; and Willow, 22.
Additional Reporting: Press Association
