Will Smith has become the talk of the town following the Oscars 2022 ceremony on Sunday, March 27, when he slapped comedian Chris Rock for making a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith. The comic, who was presenting the Oscar for the best documentary, made an unsavoury remark about GI Jane 2 directed towards Jada, apparently referencing her hair loss due to alopecia.
At first, Rock appeared to have got away with his gag, and Smith was seen laughing with the audience. However, the situation quickly soured and the actor was seen striding up to the stage, before slapping the comic squarely in the face.
He sat back down, and then launched an expletive-laden tirade against Rock, telling him to "Take my wife's name out of your ******* mouth" - leaving the comic, the audience and viewers bewildered by the sudden attack. The 53-year-old actor later won Best Actor for his leading role in King Richard , and took the opportunity to apologise for his outburst in his acceptance speech. You can read all our latest TV news here.
Read more: Will Smith's tearful speech and apology in full after Chris Rock incident at Oscars
This isn't the first time Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith's 28-year relationship has come under the spotlight, and their tumultuous marriage has made headlines over the years - fuelled by persistent speculation about divorce, an open relationship, swinging and infidelity, as well as a candid revelation from the pair about their separation and Jada's "entanglement".
1994: Will and Jada meet on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
The pair first met when Jada auditioned for the role of Will's girlfriend on the iconic American sitcom. Will was married at the time to actress Sheree Zampino - with whom he had a son, Trey - and Jada did not secure the role.
However, this didn't stop Will from seeing his soulmate in Jada. He admitted in an interview on Jada's Red Table Talk show in 2018 that he had an epiphany that he was with the wrong person and that "[Jada] was the woman I was supposed to be with".
1995: The pair begin dating
After Will's divorce from Zampino was finalised, he made his move on Jada and the pair began officially dating.
1997: Engagement and marriage
The Men In Black star proposed to Jada in November 1997, and they tied the knot one month later on New Year's Eve at a hotel in Baltimore. Jada was pregnant with their first child at the time.
1998: Their first child is born
The couple's first child, Jaden Smith, was born on July 8. Now 23, his life so far has seen him follow in the footsteps of his parents, with a successful career as a rapper and actor.
2000: Their second child is born
Jada gave birth to Willow, their second child, on October 31. Like the rest of her family, the 21-year-old has made a name for herself in Hollywood as a singer and actress.
2011: Rumours that Jada is having an affair
Amid rumours that Jada was having an affair with American singer-songwriter Marc Anthony, the couple put the gossip to bed in a statement to People magazine: "Although we are reluctant to respond to these types of press reports, the rumors circulating about our relationship are completely false. We are still together, and our marriage is intact."
2013: Jada denies rumours of an open relationship
Their marriage came under scrutiny once again - this time the rumours being that they were in an open marriage - and the actress took to social media to quash any doubts.
She wrote on Facebook: "Will and I BOTH can do WHATEVER we want, because we TRUST each other to do so. This does NOT mean we have an open relationship...this means we have a GROWN one.”
2015: Will denies divorce rumours
Two years later, Will addressed speculation that they were separating - rumours which had shrouded their relationship for years.
He wrote on Facebook: “Under normal circumstances, I don’t usually respond to foolishness. (Because it’s contagious). But, so many people have extended [to] me their ‘deepest condolences’ that I figured – ‘What the hell… I can be foolish, too!’
“So, in the interest of redundant, repetitious, over and over-again-ness… Jada and I are… NOT GETTING A DIVORCE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I promise you all —if I ever decide to divorce my Queen—I SWEAR I’ll tell you myself! #Dumb People Should Have to Wear Scarlet D’s."
2017: Jada and August Alsina seen together and Jada denies swinging rumour.
Jada was seen at with American singer and rapper August Alsina at the BET Awards in June 2017. She had been introduced to the artist back in 2015.
One month later, Jada said on talk show Watch What Happens Live that the "craziest" rumour she's ever heard about she and Will is that they are swingers. "It’s constant. And I’m like, yo, I wish. I wish," she told host Andy Cohen at the time.
2018: Will says he and Jada don't call themselves a married couple
Will said he and Jada “refer to ourselves as life partners," in an episode of TIDAL's Rap Radar podcast.
"There’s no deal breakers. There’s nothing she could do - ever. Nothing that would break our relationship. She has my support till death and it feels so good to get to that space," he said.
2020: Jada admits to "entanglement" with August Alsina
In an interview on June 30, August Alsina said he and Jada had dated while she was married - and that her marriage was open at the time.
He claimed he and Will actually discussed the situation, and the actor gave them his "blessing".
"I actually sat down with Will and had a conversation due to the transformation from their marriage to life partnership that they’ve spoken on several times and it not involving romanticism,” he told radio presenter Angela Yee.
He continued that he “totally gave myself to that relationship for years of my life and I truly and really, really deeply loved and have a ton of love for her.”
On the very same day, Jada's representatives dismissed Alsina's claims as "absolutely not true".
But shortly after, on July 10, Jada cleared the air about her relationship with Alsina in an episode of her talk show Red Table Talk, as Will sat opposite her.
She confirmed she did date Alsina, but she and Will were separated at the time.
"We decided that we were going to separate for a period of time and you go figure out how to make yourself happy and I’ll figure out how to make myself happy,” said Will.
Jada confirmed her involvement with Alsina was "absolutely" a relationship, saying: "From there, as time went on, I got into a different kind of entanglement with August."
However, she denied that Will had given "permission" for their relationship, but it was all down to her.
Three days after the famous chat, the drama seemed to have been wrapped up, with Us Weekly reporting, according to a source: "The Smiths as a family are really glad they addressed this and put everything out in the open."
2021: Jada spills on their sex life and Will's memoir is published
In an episode of Red Table Talk in October, Jada talked about their life in the bedroom and admitted it "takes work".
“It’s hard...The thing Will and I talk about a lot is the journey. We started in this [relationship] at a very young age, 22 years old ... I think you expect your partner to know - especially when it comes to sex. It’s like: ‘Well, if you love me, you should know. If you love me, you should read my mind.’ That’s a huge pitfall,” she said.
The following month, Will's memoir was published and he revealed the evolution of their relationship. He described the "wild a romantic whirlwind" of their first few months together, but said later on they ran into trouble with "the burning away of the idealistic illusion of the perfect marriage and the perfect family". While they didn't want a divorce, he admitted "the structure of the life that we had established was strangling both of us". He said the two of them eventually reached a compromise with "the power of loving in freedom".
In an interview with Oprah the day after his book was published, the star revealed the strength of their relationship and clarified his phrase "loving in freedom", stating: "People are trying to put something on it: ‘Will and Jada—what are they doing with other people?’ Will and Jada ain’t really doing too much of nothing. Will and Jada are on a spiritual journey to cleanse the poisonous, unloving parts of our hearts. And we’re doing it together in this lifetime no matter what."
2022: No more 'entanglements', no infidelity and Oscars incident
This year has already seen even further insight into the couple's marriage. In an interview on the red carpet at the SAG Awards in February this year, E! host Laverne Cox joked, "We can't wait for more Red Table Talk and more entanglements," and Jada joked back that there would be "no more of those". The strength of the couple's relationship was further solidified this month when Will insisted in an interview on CBS that there has "never been infidelity in our marriage", adding that there had been no surprises between the pair.
As for slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars, Smith said it was down to his calling from God to "protect" his wife and family. In his apology during his acceptance speech for King Richard , a tearful Smith explained that he leapt to Jada's defence out of his love for her - just like the character he embodied in the film.
"Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family. In this time in my life, in this moment, I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do and be in this world," he said. "I'm being called on in my life to love people and to protect people, and to be a river to my people."
He continued: "Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father just like they said. I look like the crazy father just like they said about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things."
