The infamous “entanglement” was apparently not considered cheating.
Will Smith clarified in a new interview on Sunday that he and wife Jada Pinkett Smith “never” had infidelity in their marriage, despite previously sharing that they’ve dated other people since they wed.
“Jada and I talk about everything, and we have never surprised one another with anything ever,” the “King Richard” star told Gayle King on “CBS Mornings.”
In July 2020, Jada, 50, shared in an episode of her Facebook Watch series, “Red Table Talk,” that she and singer August Alsina had a relationship while she and Will, 53, were privately separated.
The “Matrix” star famously dubbed her 2015 tryst an “entanglement,” refusing to call it an affair.
Meanwhile, Alsina, now 29, confirmed that Will did in fact know about his relationship with Jada.
“I actually sat down with Will and had a conversation due to the transformation from their marriage to life partnership … he gave me his blessing,” the “Entanglements” singer said in an interview with Angela Yee from “The Breakfast Club” in June 2020.
He also claimed he fell in love with the mother of two, adding, “I totally gave myself to that relationship for years of my life, and I truly and really, really deeply love and have a ton of love for her. I devoted myself to it, I gave my full self to it, so much so to the point that I can die right now and be okay with knowing that I truly gave myself to somebody.”
However, on “Red Table Talk,” Jada denied Will gave her “permission” to see Alsina, but said she understood why the crooner would assume he did.
In September 2021, Will shared that for the “large part” of his marriage to Jada, “monogamy was what we chose, not thinking of monogamy as the only relational perfection.”
The “Hitch” star told GQ magazine that he and the “Gotham” alum have “given each other trust and freedom” within their union because for them, marriage “can’t be a prison.”
“I don’t suggest our road for anybody. I don’t suggest this road for anybody,” he noted. “But the experiences that the freedoms that we’ve given one another and the unconditional support, to me, is the highest definition of love.”
In November 2021, Will further explained to Oprah Winfrey why he and his wife once took a step back from their marriage, resulting in the Alsina relationship.
“What happened was we realized that it was a fantasy illusion that we could make each other happy,” the “Independence Day” star said on Apple TV+’s “The Oprah Conversation.”
“We agreed that she had to make herself happy, and I had to make myself happy, and then we were going to present ourselves back to the relationship already happy, versus demanding the other person fill our empty cup.”
Will and Jada have been married since 1997 and share 23-year-old son Jaden and 21-year-old daughter Willow.
