The relationship between Chris Rock and Jada Pinkett Smith is usually discussed through the lens of the unforgettable Oscars moment. But long before the 2022 ceremony changed their relationship forever, the two actors shared a much different dynamic that only a few people knew about.
While promoting her 2023 memoir ‘Worthy,’ Jada revealed that Rock once called and asked her out on a date. Mind you, it wasn’t part of a joke or a comedy routine, but a misunderstanding about her marriage to Will Smith. It led to an awkward conversation that ended with Rock offering an immediate apology.
Chris Rock Thought Jada Pinkett Smith Was Getting Divorced
For years, tabloids regularly claimed that Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith were heading for a divorce. According to Pinkett Smith, those rumors circulated so often that people eventually began to believe them.
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Speaking to PEOPLE, she recalled that Rock became one of those people who fell for them. “I think every summer, all the reports would come out that me and Will were getting a divorce,” she said. During one particular summer, Rock decided to call.
“He was like, ‘I’d love to take you out,'” Pinkett Smith remembered. Caught off guard, she asked what he meant by that. Rock replied, “Well, aren’t you and Will getting a divorce?” Pinkett Smith quickly explained that the stories weren’t obviously true.
“No. Chris, those are just rumors,” she recalled telling him. The comedian immediately realized his mistake and was apparently “appalled,” according to Smith’s wife. “And he profusely apologized, and that was that,” she revealed.
Ironically, Pinkett Smith later revealed that she and Will Smith had actually been living separate lives since 2016, even though they remained legally married and kept the separation private for years.
The Awkward Phone Call Came Years Before The Oscars Fallout
The unexpected phone call wasn’t the only chapter in Rock and Pinkett Smith’s complicated history. Their relationship had already experienced public tension during the 88th Academy Awards in 2016, when Rock served as the ceremony’s host.
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That year, Pinkett Smith announced she would boycott the Oscars over the lack of diversity among the nominees. During his opening monologue, the comedian joked about her decision, comparing the boycott to “me boycotting Rihanna’s panties.” He added, “I wasn’t invited.”
Looking back, Pinkett Smith told PEOPLE she wished she had handled the situation differently. Instead of addressing Rock publicly, she believes she should have called him directly to explain her position. She also revealed that the two later apologized to each other and believed they had moved past the misunderstanding.
Their relationship took a dramatic turn six years later when Rock joked about Pinkett Smith’s shaved head during the 2022 Oscars, prompting Will Smith to walk onstage and slap the comedian. That moment became one of television’s most talked-about incidents.
However, Pinkett Smith’s memoir clearly showed that their history stretched much further back. An awkward phone call, built on years of tabloid speculation, had already become an unexpected part of their story long before the world watched it unfold on live television.
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