Will Smith: what King Richard star said about Jada Pinkett ‘infidelity’ - what Rebel Wilson said at Baftas

Actor Will Smith has now won a number of awards for his performance in King Richard, having picked up the Leading Actor award during the Baftas 2022 and again for Best Actor at the Academy Awards - although that accolade has thoroughly been overshadowed by his physical altercation with Chris Rock on stage during the ceremony.

In a recent interview, the King Richard star addressed the affair rumours that have followed his marriage to Jada Pinkett Smith after it was revealed that she had been in an “entanglement” with R&B singer August Alsina in 2020.

This is everything you need to know.

What did Will Smith say about infidelity?

Two years on from the Red Table Talk interview in which Pinkett Smith confirmed an “entanglement” with singer August Alsina, Smith shut down rumours about affairs within their marriage.

Speaking to Gayle King on CBS Sunday Morning, he said: “There’s never been infidelity in our marriage. Jada and I talk about everything, and we have never surprised one another with anything ever.”

Smith told King that for the time being, he is focusing on his happiness and career.

He said: “I think I’m a better actor than I’ve ever been, and I think these next 10 years of my career will be the top of my acting performances.

“I also feel like I can help people, there’s a teacher inside of me that’s trying to get out. I’ve learned to be happy here and I’ve learned to create love here and I want to share.”

Smith won the Leading Actor award during the Baftas 2022 for his performance in King Richard, as well as winning the Best Actor award at the Oscars - although Smith will more likely be remembered for taking to the stage to slap presenter Chris Rock and not for winning the award.

Are Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith in an open marriage?

In an interview with GQ last year, Smith talked about his relationship with Pinkett Smith and how, over the course of their 25 years together, they stopped being monogamous.

He said: “Jada never believed in conventional marriage… Jada had family members that had an unconventional relationship.

“So she grew up in a way that was very different than how I grew up. There were significant endless discussions about, what is relational perfection? What is the perfect way to interact as a couple?

“And for the large part of our relationship, monogamy was what we chose, not thinking of monogamy as the only relational perfection.

“We have given each other trust and freedom, with the belief that everybody has to find their own way. And marriage for us can’t be a prison. And I don’t suggest our road for anybody.

“But the experiences that the freedoms that we’ve given one another and the unconditional support, to me, is the highest definition of love.”

The interview came around after, in 2020, Pinkett Smith confirmed her “entanglement” with R&B singer August Alsina.

Amid the frenzy that ensued, Smith and Pinkett Smith attended the Red Table for a 12 minute interview which discussed the recent revelations and the dynamic of their relationship.

In the GQ cover story, interviewer and writer Wesley Lowery states: “Because the impetus for the Red Table Talk was Alsina’s disclosures, a viewer could have walked away thinking that Jada was the only one engaging in other sexual relationships, when that was not, Smith delicately explained to me, in fact the case.”

What did Rebel Wilson say at the Baftas?

During the 2022 Baftas, which took place on Sunday (13 March) night, host Rebel Wilson made a crack about Smith’s highly publicised open relationship with Pinkett Smith.

Smith won the award for Leading Actor during the awards show, but as he was absent from the ceremony, King Richard director Reinaldo Marcus Green accepted the prize on his behalf.

Joking about his win, Wilson said that she thought Smith’s “best performance in the past year was being OK with all his wife’s boyfriends”.

In response to a groan from the crowd, she added: “Come on, he never showed up!”

What is King Richard about?

King Richard is a biographical drama about the tennis legends Serena and Venus Williams’ father and coach, Richard Williams.

The official synopsis for the film from distributor Warner Bros reads: “King Richard follows the journey of Richard Williams, an undeterred father instrumental in raising two of the most extraordinarily gifted athletes of all time, who will end up changing the sport of tennis forever.

“Two-time Oscar nominee Will Smith (Ali, The Pursuit of Happyness) stars as Richard, under the direction of Reinaldo Marcus Green (Monsters and Men).

“Driven by a clear vision of their future and using unconventional methods, Richard has a plan that will take Venus and Serena Williams from the streets of Compton, California to the global stage as legendary icons.

“The profoundly moving film shows the power of family, perseverance and unwavering belief as a means to achieve the impossible and impact the world.”

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