Over the past month, Jada Pinkett Smith’s several bombshells from her memoir Worthy have made waves, most notably when she revealed that she and husband Will Smith had been quietly separated since 2016.
Since then, the 52-year-old actress has been candid about their struggles with marriage and the way they’ve found themselves drawn closer to each other while still maintaining separate lives.
In an interview with Fearne Cotton on her podcast Happy Place, Jada was asked: “What did you see in Will initially that made you go ‘Well, I’m lacking those bits, I need that’?”
She responded: “I saw in him that he is all sky, happy. He’s looking at the glass as half full and I’m looking at it half empty. Even to this day…he’s just always looking for a laugh.”
Both women broke out into laughter as well as Jada incredulously continued: “What’s going on? The world is stir crazy right now, and he is just looking for the laugh.
“But he was able to also do both, it just so happens that he leans more towards joy, joy, joy! That was the part for me that was so beautiful. And he’s also freaking smart, a go-getter, and he’s a climber. He doesn’t like to quit. That’s what we have in common.”
Fearne further questioned Jada about the factors that contributed to their infamous separation, to which she candidly said: “The biggest problem was that we were in that power struggle of romanticism…what we believed that the other person needed to be in order to feel good.”
She explained that there was a difference in perspective between herself and the Oscar-winning actor, who each felt like they were in different places in their lives to make the marriage fully work.
MORE: Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith come together for joint family celebration
“I was like ‘Oh, connection, dude.’ And he’s like ‘Man, I’m trying to be the biggest movie star in the world, we’ll get to that.’ I think that’s a really universal idea.
“I just wanted to be his everything, I wanted him to be my everything, I wanted to be so absorbed. And that wasn’t quite it either.”
MORE: Will Smith reveals exciting new chapter without wife Jada after bombshell revelations
The Red Table Talk host continued: “I think we had to go our separate ways to see what was true,” while also commenting on how they rekindled their relationship in a new way.
© Kevin Winter“After the Oscars, we started to make a different trajectory together. I know people are confused, but I don’t know what to tell you. Having space, but never wanting to leave each other’s side. That’s what those years of separation taught us… I need to love him freely.”
MORE: Jada Pinkett Smith is entering her ‘separation’ style era
The Hollywood power couple have remained steadfast as a family unit ever since Worthy dropped on October 17, affirming their love for each other while maintaining that their relationship is strong despite their separation.
© NBCHowever, in her interview with Today Show anchor Hoda Kotb, during which she first revealed the news of their separation, she stated: “I 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.”
Get the lowdown on the biggest, hottest celebrity news, features and profiles coming out of the U.S. Sign up to our HELLO! Hollywood newsletter and get them delivered straight to your inbox.
