Hoda Kotb Addresses Jada Pinkett Smith’s “Bombshell” Reveal That She And Will Smith Have Been Separated Since 2016: “I Think They Felt The Pressure Of Being This Couple That Represented A Lot To So Many”

By Radhamely De Leon
Published Oct. 11, 2023, 12:11 p.m. ET

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Hoda Kotb took a moment on Today to address the bombshell news Jada Pinkett Smith shared with her during their upcoming exclusive interview: she and Will Smith have been separated since 2016.

Per her interview with the actress, Kotb learned that the former couple essentially has “a divorce in practice” and are not legally separated.

“I asked her a bunch of questions, like I asked her, is it because there was no prenup and maybe it’s better or easier not to go through that? She said no,” Kotb shared. “They have like a familial commitment and I think she thinks that if there were actual divorce papers it would not be what it is.”

Kotb also explained that the Smiths kept their relationship status under wraps throughout all these years because they didn’t feel like it was “the right time.” But, she says, Pinkett Smith’s candid confession shows that “for her, this is the right time. This is the time where now she finally feels comfortable saying this is us.”

She also speculated as to why they may have kept their secret for so long.

“I think they felt the pressure of being this couple that represented a lot to so many, and I think that mattered,” Kotb said. “They made people feel good, and she knew that.”

The Today host added, “She still has great love for Will, he has great love for her, they have children together, obviously.”

She then acknowledged that Pinkett Smith can “come off a little distant” and seem “guarded,” but claimed she became “very vulnerable” during their interview and spoke on many personal topics as they walked through the Baltimore neighborhood the actress grew up in.

“I don’t know if you can tell [in the clip] she’d been crying, but throughout the course of the interview she was just very open about the things that have been difficult for her,” Kotb said. “There’s a time in your life where you say, why am I still pretending? And this book Worthy is that.”

On Today With Hoda & Jenna, they aired an exclusive clip from the interview in which Pinkett Smith opens up about the reasons behind her separation from Smith.

The clip showed Kotb boldly asking her why they kept it a secret for so long, saying, “I feel like you’re a straight talker, except you’re not sometimes. So, why do that, what was the reason?”

Pinkett Smith confessed, “I think just not being ready yet, still trying to figure out between the two of us how to be in partnership. And in regards to how do we present that to people, we hadn’t figured that out.”

She later stated that there were “a lot of things” that caused the relationship to “fracture,” but she also said, “We were just exhausted with trying. I think we were both kind of still stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person would be.”

Pinkett Smith is scheduled to appear on Today With Hoda & Jenna on Tuesday, Oct. 16, the same day her memoir Worthy will be released. Kotb’s interview with Pinkett Smith will premiere at 8/7c on Oct. 13 on NBC.