Will Smith says Jada Pinkett Smith’s separation comments “kind of woke him up”

nme.com:

Will Smith has addressed his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s comments about their marriage in her upcoming memoir.In the book set to be released on Tuesday (October 17), Jada details how the couple, while not officially divorced, have been living separately since 2016.In a profile about Jada on The New York Times, Will explains via email that reading the book “kind of woke him up”, describing Jada as being more “resilient, clever, and compassionate than I had understood”.He added: “When you’ve been with someone for more than half of your life, a sort of emotional blindness sets in, and you can all too easily lose your sensitivity to their hidden nuances and subtle beauties.”Jada has been married to Will since 1997.

The couple share two children together, Jaden and Willow, while Will also has a son, Trey, from his previous marriage to Sheree Zampino.In an interview with Today last week (October 11), Jada explained that they had kept their separation a secret due to “not being ready yet” and “still trying to figure out between the two of us how to be in partnership” with each other in public.Speaking about the reason behind the split, Jada said: “I think we were both kind of just stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person should be.”Elsewhere in the book, Jada reveals how Chris Rock once asked her out on a date following reports that she was divorcing Will.