A lot has happened after Will Smith's now-infamous Oscars slap. He won his first-ever Oscar minutes later, Chris Rock refused to file a police report against him, the actor released a public apology on Instagram, and now, he's retired from the Academy. Through it all, Smith's family has supported him.
His wife, Jada Pinkett Smith was even caught laughing during the incident. Reacting to the slap, Jaden Smith also tweeted: "And That's How We Do It." Then there's the King Richard star's ex-wife, Sheree Zampino who celebrated his Oscar win amid the backlash. It had fans wondering — how close are the ex-couple these days?
Why Will Smith & Sheree Zampino Divorced
Smith and Zampino were married from 1992 to 1995. They met through a meeting arranged by Smith's Fresh Prince of Bel-Air co-star, Alfonso Ribeiro. Initially, though, the Men in Black actor visited the set of A Different World to meet Pinkett Smith but ended up meeting Zampino. "I went to Different World to meet Jada and met Sheree and ended up marrying Sheree and having Trey with Sheree," the Will author later explained on his wife's show, Red Table Talk. "I didn't meet Jada that day … we had all these near misses."
When eventually, the actor met Pinkett Smith, and he knew they had a strong connection. But he was still committed to his marriage. It was Zampino who pulled the plug. She filed for divorce on Valentine's Day. The two were officially separated by December 1995. Later on, she noted that there was no third party involved. "Our marriage ended because we were so young," she wrote on Facebook. "It's just a lot of responsibility. Marriage is not easy. Especially at that age."
She added that Smith's Hollywood success affected their marriage. "Will was becoming bigger and bigger with his career," continued the new cast member of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. "I'm becoming smaller and smaller and smaller." It was also tough for the actor who sees their split as a failure to this day. "With Sheree and with Trey, that was a really difficult time. Divorce was the worst thing in my adult life, divorce was the ultimate failure for me," Smith said on Red Table Talk. "I've been hurt a lot in my adult life, but I don't think anything touches the failure of getting divorced from my 2-year-old son's mother."
Will Smith's Present Relationship With Ex-Wife Sheree Zampino
Smith maintained a co-parenting relationship with Zampino following their divorce. However, it wasn't easy for the Matrix actress to accept that she'll always be in her husband's life. In a Red Table Talk episode, they opened up about their journey into becoming this "non-sexual throuple," as Pinkett Smith calls it. It all started in a heated phone call where the show host hung up on Zampino. Smith told her she was out of line. "His take was 'that is Trey's mother and that's just not your place,'" Pinkett Smith recalled.
It made her realize that Zampino will and should always be in Smith's life. She also said that she developed a "coping mechanism" for their blended family situation. "One of the coping mechanisms with me with Sheree was really, like, 'Hey, she gifted me.' She really did. She gifted me," the Girls Trip actress explained. "I started to put that into my psychology. She's not an enemy. She did me a favor. But then on top of that I had to go into an even deeper psychology of, 'She's Trey's mother,' as my relationship with Trey deepened."
Sheree Zampino's Reaction To Will Smith's Oscar Slap
Zampino reunited with Smith after the 2022 Oscars Ceremony. She posted a snap of them together, paired with the caption: "Epic Night! Congratulations again - when 1 wins we all win! #family1st." She didn't make any comments about the slap, though. But her RHOBH co-star, Kyle Richards revealed how Smith's ex-wife reacted to the incident at the time.
"She left. She's hanging out with him and the family tonight," Richards told Extra during the 2022 Elton John AIDS Foundation Oscar Party. "We were confused, honestly. Now I'm beginning to think it was real." She added that she was initially "shocked" about what happened. "It's a little disappointing, like, you're nominated for an Oscar, just take it, be proud … Don't taint it by adding that into the mix," Richards continued. Despite not being on Smith's side, she admitted that he indeed "stole the show" back there.