Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have faced the brunt of tons of ridiculous speculation about their relationship (see: August Alsina casually revealing that he dated Jada while she was married). But while that was all extremely !!!!, it isn’t the first time Will and Jada have dealt with the internet flipping TF out about their marriage. They’ve been shutting down rumors for literally decades—from claims they’re in an open relationship and speculation that they’re swingers to reports that Jada cheated on Will with Marc Anthony. But as usual, the truth is waaay more complicated than a bunch of online drama. Time to break down the rumors with a handy and mildly thirsty timeline—starting with how Will and Jada met and fell in love.
Will met Jada on the set of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, but he was married to Sheree Zampino at the time. Once he and Sheree split, Will straight-up called Jada and asked if she was seeing anybody. When she said no, he replied, “Cool. You’re seeing me now.” The rest is history!
Jada and Will got married while she was pregnant with their son, Jaden—although initially, Jada didn’t love the idea of making their relationship “official” on paper. Here’s what she told People in a 2019 cover story:
“I never wanted to get married. But my mother was like, ‘You have to get married’—she’s so old-school—and Will wanted a family. So I said, ‘All right, maybe it’s something I should do.’”
