Witnessing the turmoil between her father and her mother, the 18-year-old singer/actress admits she at one point hoped that her parents would get a divorce than seeing them 'unhappy in the same house.'
- Jun 27, 2019
AceShowbiz - Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith went through the darkest point in their marriage to stay together for more than 20 years. While they managed to make it through and maintain their marriage, their daughter Willow Smith reveals that she wanted her parents to divorce at the time.
Witnessing the tension between her father and mother, the 18-year-old singer/actress thought that Will and Jada would've been happier if they had separated. "It crossed my mind a lot," she tells PEOPLE. "I was like, 'I'd rather them divorce than keep being unhappy in the same house.' "
On how the couple solved their issue, Willow says from her perspective, "Once they realized that they had individual work they needed to do and started doing it, everything changed. The communication was so much smoother and there's almost no tension between them."
She goes on sharing, "Before, the kids could feel it, [and] I think not knowing how to help contribute to my own confusion and my sadness." Now, Willow says that her parents have "a true friendship and that's the most beautiful thing ever."
Jada also opens up with the magazine about what caused the turmoil ten years into their marriage. "There was too much concentration on what was happening externally, and the family unit itself wasn't getting the attention and care that I felt we needed," she says.
"Will's like, 'We just came from Oslo, going to the [2009] Nobel Peace Prize ceremony [for Barack Obama] as a family, you've got a big house with a lake - isn't this amazing?!' And I'm like, 'No,' " she recalls. "By the time my 40th [birthday] came, I was like, 'I can't do it anymore.' I was so depleted."
The "Gotham" alum reveals that she "had to really take time out for me and figure out what I wanted for myself." She adds, "I had to kind of put everyone aside and ask, 'What would I do every day if it was just Jada?' I literally had no idea."
Jada eventually rebuilt herself through "the most excruciating process" that took years, but it was worth it because "by redefining myself, the relationship got redefined." Having gone through that, the 47-year-old actress says that she and Will "have come to such a beautiful place" and that "I feel like we have a stronger bond than we even had in the beginning."
