Jada Pinkett Smith recently revealed in an exclusive interview with "Today" that she and Will Smith have been separated since 2016. While speaking with "Today" host Hoda Kotb, Pinkett Smith revealed that she and Smith are separated and have been living "completely separate lives" since 2016, nearly 20 years after they tied the knot in 1997. In the preview clip of the interview, Kotb asks Pinkett Smith to clarify the couple's marital status because although they are separated, they are not legally divorced. "It was not a divorce on paper," Kotb clarifies. Pinkett Smith nodded in agreement. "...But it was a divorce," Kotb continues. "Divorce," Pinkett Smith emphasizes.

When Kotb asked Pinkett Smith for the reason why they have not shared the news with the public over the past 7 years, Pinkett Smith responded saying they were "just not being ready yet ... Still trying to figure out between the two of us how to be in partnership ... In regards to, how do we present that to people? We hadn't figured that out." Kotb also asked if there was a specific instance that "fractured" their relationship. “Why it fractured...that — that’s a lot of things ... By the time we got to 2016, we were just exhausted with trying. I think we were both kind of just still stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person should be,” said Pinkett Smith. When it comes to a legal divorce, Pinkett Smith admitted that she has thought about it, but can never bring herself to go through with it. “I made a promise that there will never be a reason for us to get a divorce. We will work through ... whatever,” she said. “I just haven’t been able to break that promise."

Back in 2020, the couple made headlines when Pinkett Smith revealed on her show "Red Table Talk" she she had an affair with family friend August Alsina, calling it an "entanglement." During their episode of "Red Table Talk," Smith and Pinkett Smith revealed how that affected their relationship, saying it resulted in them breaking up for some time. What we didn't know was that they never got back together after this.

Pinkett Smith details the start of her relationship with Will Smith, to it's current state in her new memoir "Worthy" which will be released on October 17th.