The daily gossip: Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith secretly separated in 2016, Pete Davidson has been buying thousands of sealed VHS tapes, and more

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Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith at the 2022 Oscars
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith at the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar party
(Image credit: Lionel Hahn / Getty Images)

1. Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith secretly separated in 2016

Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have disentangled. In an interview with Hoda Kotb for NBC News, the actress revealed that she and the "King Richard" star secretly separated seven years ago. Pinkett Smith said she wasn't "ready" to reveal this and unsure how to "present" their partnership to people, which is why they have maintained that they were still together all this time. The relationship fractured for "a lot of" reasons, she said, explaining that, by 2016, they were both "exhausted with trying." But Pinkett Smith has never been able to bring herself to file for divorce, so the two are still married, even though "we live separately." Meanwhile, Pinkett Smith revealed to People that Chris Rock, whom her husband would later slap at the Oscars, once asked her out on a date amid rumors that she was getting a divorce. After she told him this wasn't true, Pinkett Smith said Rock "profusely apologized." She and Rock have not spoken since the Oscars slap. Today, People

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.