Jada Pinkett Smith has turned 51 with husband Will Smith by her side.
After what was a turbulent year for her family — stemming from Will’s Oscar night meltdown — the Red Table Talk star celebrated her birthday on Sunday with her family, friends and a lot of cake.
The actress/host/singer shared photos and videos of her outdoor party on social media the day after. Dressed in a bright hued long sweater, shirt and pants that she matched with boots and a black knit hat, she danced a little as everyone sang in front of a table of treats and decorations including the word “love” in gold script.
Will urged his wife to make a wish as she blew out the gold candles on the cake, which was topped with flower pedals. She then made what turned out to make brief remarks, at the urging of the group, which included her son, Jaden, and daughter, Willow.
“I’m just grateful,” she began and then got quiet. “Just deeply grateful.”
Will then chimed in, “The end.” As everyone clapped and Jada got a hug from Jaden, the King Richard actor said, “She’s grateful. Highest virtue.”
The couple, married since 1997, were attending the Oscars in March when presenter Chris Rock made a joke about Jada’s bald head, apparently unaware she has alopecia, and Will stormed the stage and smacked him. “Keep my wife’s name out your f***ing mouth,” Will screamed at Rock as the show was broadcast around the world. Will went on to win the Best Actor award soon after.
There was fallout with apologies, bans and everyone weighing in. Ultimately, Will sat out the conversation for a few months, returning to social media in July to discuss the incident, deny Jada instructed him to hit Rock and apologize to Rock, again. Since then, he’s been posting a few Instagrams, keeping things light.
Jada, who recently kicked off a new season of her popular Facebook Watch show, celebrated “Bald is Beautiful” day last week with a photo of herself with her shaved head. She first talked about her hair loss on Red Table Talk in 2018, and then got candid about living with alopecia in December. Since the Oscars, she devoted an episode of her show to the topic.