Jada Pinkett Smith reveals separation from Will Smith since 2016

WASHINGTON (TND) — Jada Pinkett Smith revealed in an interview that she and husband Will Smith have been living "completely separate lives" since 2016.

In a clip released Wednesday, Pinkett Smith told Hoda Kotb that it is essentially a divorce without papers.

"By the time we got to 2016, we were just exhausted with trying," she told Kotb. "I think we were both kind of just still stuck in our fantasy of what we thought the other person should be."

Pinkett Smith added that though she's considered divorce, she hasn't been able to go through with it.

"I made a promise that there will never be a reason for us to get a divorce. We will work through... whatever," she said.

The Hollywood couple has been married since 1997 and share two children, Willow and Jaden, as well as son, Trey, from Smith's first marriage.

Marital troubles and separation have been addressed in the past but never this specifically.

During an episode of "Red Table Talk" the couple addressed Pinkett Smith's extramarital relationship and then there was the infamous slap at the 2022 Acadamy Awards.

At the ceremony, Smith walked up on stage and struck presenter Chris Rock after Rock made a joke about Pinkett Smith's hair.

In a new interview with People Magazine, Pinkett Smith spoke about the incident and said she initially thought the slap was part of a skit.

"I was like, 'There's no way that Will hit him,'" she said. "It wasn't until Will started to walk back to his chair that I even realized it wasn't a skit."

Even though Smith has apologized several times, he received a 10-year ban on attending the Oscars or any other academy event.

The full interview will air on an hour-long NBC News prime-time special on Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. ET. Pinkett Smith also has a memoir, "Worthy, " out on Oct. 17, which promises more details about their lives and relationship, as well as her upbringing in Baltimore.

Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.