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"We have given each other trust and freedom, with the belief that everybody has to find their own way.”
Will Smith has opened up about his open marriage in a new interview with GQ Magazine.
According to Smith, him and Jada Pinkett had to have many “significant endless discussions about, what is relational perfection?” he said. “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.”
It seems the power couple made the decision in 2011 after much arguing, so much so that their daughter Willow begged them to stop. Smith says they had to rework their marriage and mold it into something that worked for them.
“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”
During their 24 year marriage, Smith confirmed that both he and Jada have engaged in sexual relationships outside of their relationship. "We have given each other trust and freedom, with the belief that everybody has to find their own way,” he said.
Last year, Jada faced public scrutiny for an alleged affair with singer August Alsina and controversially took herself to the Red Table Talk "for some healing." Will's revelation cast a new light on the entanglement drama, confirming that it wasn't only Jada “engaging in other sexual relationships.”
While Jada had more unconventional family relationship models that helped expand her thinking, Will says his attractions to other people outside of his marriage caused him a lot of guilt at first due to his Christian upbringing. He had to work to reprogram his mind to understand that it “was okay to think Halle is fine. It doesn’t make me a bad person that I’m married and I think Halle is beautiful. Whereas in my mind, in my Christian upbringing, even my thoughts were sins.”
There's been speculation about the couple's open relationship for years. Though the Smith's haven't shared any more information or the names of any of their other partners, it's encouraging to see people in unconventional relationship models share their truths and hopefully it opens the door for others to explore their own identities.
Taylor Henderson is a PRIDE.com contributor. This proud Texas Bama studied Media Production/Studies and Sociology at The University of Texas at Austin, where he developed his passions for pop culture, writing, and videography. He's absolutely obsessed with Beyoncé, mangoes, and cheesy YA novels that allow him to vicariously experience the teen years he spent in the closet. He's also writing one!
Taylor Henderson is a PRIDE.com contributor. This proud Texas Bama studied Media Production/Studies and Sociology at The University of Texas at Austin, where he developed his passions for pop culture, writing, and videography. He's absolutely obsessed with Beyoncé, mangoes, and cheesy YA novels that allow him to vicariously experience the teen years he spent in the closet. He's also writing one!
