The Stunning Transformation Of Jada Pinkett Smith

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith's names may come to mind when you think of Hollywood dynasties. And, really, you'd be hard-pressed to argue that the Smith family is second to any other. For decades, Will and Jada have starred on the silver screen, gaining worldwide recognition and acclaim, as well as widespread adoration. Add to that the fact that there are three Smith children — Trey (Will's son with ex-wife Sheree Zampino), Jaden, and Willow — and now you basically have a royal family.

The Smiths weren't always famous, though. In fact, Jada's origin story that's as humble as it gets and it's pretty impressive that she's come so far and done so well for herself. Chalk that up to pure talent and raw ingenuity, as well as the determination to succeed. 

So just where is Jada from? What was she like in the very beginning and how did she get to where she is today? Take a look at her incredibly stunning transformation.

On September 18, 1971, Jada Pinkett Smith was born in Baltimore, Maryland. She was raised in the Park Heights neighborhood, which she has described as "a neighborhood full of desperate, uneducated people who were brought down and oppressed by their lack of opportunity" (via The Baltimore Sun). She continued, saying, "I look back and go: 'How did I make it out of there?'" Given that as of 2017, more than half of the children in the southern part of the area lived below the poverty line, it's pretty impressive that she did.

Perhaps her inspiration to dream of bigger things had to do with where she went to school: the Baltimore School for the Arts. As one of the top five performing arts schools in the country, the institution aims to change children's lives with the power of art. Something must have lit a fire in Pinkett Smith there, as she later donated a million dollars to the school, according to Philanthropy News Digest. She asked that the theater be dedicated to her former classmate, the legendary Tupac Shakur.

Fans of Jada Pinkett Smith know that she was once good friends with Tupac Shakur, who attended the same school as her in Baltimore. And because opportunities were scarce for Pinkett Smith in her neighborhood, she did what she had to to get by. "One of the things that's very interesting that I've never really said before is that when I first met Pac, when we first met, I was a drug dealer," she revealed in an interview with Sway's Universe. 

Pinkett Smith didn't stay in that hustle for very long, as she says something "very bad happened" to her, which she did not elaborate on. Unfortunately, Shakur did remain in that lifestyle, until his untimely death in 1996, as noted by The New Yorker. 

Despite the rumors, Shakur and Pinkett Smith were never more than good friends, said Pinkett Smith. "Pac and [my] relationship was about survival," she continued. "That's how it started. I know that most people want to always connect it in this romance thing and that's just because they don't have the story."

After graduating from the Baltimore School for the Arts, where Jada Pinkett Smith studied acting and dancing, Pinkett Smith picked up and moved to Los Angeles to try her hand in Hollywood. However, she didn't exactly know what she was doing when she was just starting out. "My first headshot that I did, it was so ghetto," she recalled in a chat with Elle. "These long nails, with my name, and the guy's name that I was dating at the time, painted on my nails."

Despite her initial lack of polish, Pinkett Smith managed to start booking gigs, which, in retrospect, surprises her. "I don't know how anyone brought me in for anything with that freaking headshot," she continued. Maybe someday she'll post it for all of us to see.

Although Pinkett Smith didn't get the role she auditioned for in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990 (via Glamour), she did meet a young Will Smith for the first time on that set. She must have made quite the impression!

After appearing in a handful of shows in small parts, Jada Pinkett Smith got her big break. In 1991, she was cast as Lena James in the comedy "A Different World," which opened many doors for her. "It really put me on the map," she explained to Entertainment Weekly. "It was the first role that I had that I got the kind of exposure that gave me the opportunities to star in movies."

The show was especially popular in the Black community and it inspired many young people to attend historically Black colleges and universities. For that reason, Pinkett Smith would love to see a new version of the show rebooted today. "I would love to see kids of color back in school, and what college life is like, and the trials of going into the world with a college diploma," she shared in an interview with The Grio.  She added that it would be interesting to see how those issues play out in the modern era versus the early '90s when the show was on television.

After Jada Pinkett Smith became famous for her work on "A Different World," her celebrity started to skyrocket very quickly. She secured starring roles in a plethora of popular films, such as Menace II Society, The Inkwell, Jason's Lyric, and Set It Off, to name just a few. These movies minted her as an in-demand Hollywood actress who helped show the world what life in Black America looked like. 

One important point that Pinkett Smith brought up is that some of these films were marketed exclusively as Black films for Black audiences. "Hollywood didn't understand at that time that just because you have a Black cast, it doesn't make it a Black movie," she told Entertainment Tonight. "Today Hollywood is starting to understand that stories are universal even that are starring all Black people." Does that mean we'll finally get a "Set It Off" remake?

Pinkett Smith also landed roles in films like "The Nutty Professor," "Scream 2," and, in the early 2000s, the sequels in "The Matrix "franchise. Our girl was certainly on fire!

While Jada Pinkett Smith is a celebrity of the highest caliber in her own right, she's also quite known for her long-term romance with Will Smith, one of the biggest actors ever to grace a Hollywood sound stage. After meeting briefly in 1990 on the set of "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," the pair became friends. They became even closer after Will's first marriage dissolved in 1995. "I helped him understand what happened in his marriage," Jada explained to People. Not long after that, the couple realized not only that they were in love, but that they were soulmates.

Shortly thereafter, Will and Jada became one of the highest-profile celeb couples in SoCal and, in November 1997, Will popped the big question. "One day we got engaged," Jada continued. "And the next day we found out we were pregnant." Talk about timing!

Will and Jada got married on New Year's Eve in 1997, in a highly secretive wedding at The Cloisters in Baltimore attended by friends and family. And though things haven't always been perfect, it's clear that the duo is meant to be.

On July 8, 1998, Jada Pinkett Smith became a mother for the first time when she gave birth to her son, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, according to MTV News. Will Smith previously welcomed his first son Trey, in 1992. On Halloween two years after Jaden's birth, Pinkett Smith brought Willow Camille Reign Smith into the world, as noted by ABC News.

Pinkett Smith understood that when she decided to have children, it was going to be different not just from her own childhood, but also her partner's. "We asked for these harsh lights of Hollywood," she told Fox News. "We actually went in search for them and then we had children." Given that her kids never asked for that level of scrutiny, Pinkett Smith was sensitive to their predicament.

While Pinkett Smith was happy to become a mother, it was not without its challenges. To that end, she said she wished she'd listened sooner to her husband's advice about putting her own figurative oxygen mask on first. "You can't do something for anyone else if you don't have oxygen," she shared with People.

Jada Pinkett Smith initially made her animated debut in 1997 for the English version of "Princess Mononoke," as noted by CBS News. For the Hayao Miyazaki film fantasy adventure, Pinkett Smith voiced the character Toki. The "Scream 2" star later went on to voice the lovable hippo Gloria in the Madagascar series on five separate occasions, the first of which premiered in 2005. During her third run as Gloria, Pinkett Smith spoke to The Mercury about her thoughts on the character as well as her experience as a voice actor in the film.

Stating to the outlet that she loved her character because the hippo was both confident and comfortable with herself, Pinkett Smith said, "I try to give her that sass and that swagger," adding that she thinks Gloria is a great role model for kids. Similarly, while chatting about how she brings her character to life, Pinkett Smith revealed that many of her own personality traits and mannerisms were inserted into Gloria. "You are video-recorded," the star explained, noting that whatever movements or expressions she'd do during her lines were watched and added to her character if considered appropriate. Pinkett Smith also disclosed that consistently doing voice work was an adjustment, and she was still adapting to it during the first two films. "It took me three installments to get the swing of this," she said.

When Jada Pinkett Smith turned 40 years old, she said she had something of a breakdown. After getting married and having children, her career slowly having waned, she found herself at a crossroads. "It was the beginning of a huge transition in my life," she revealed in an interview with The Cut. "I raised my kids, I've helped Will build everything that he's ever wanted. I was like, 'The second half has got to be for me.'"

To that end, Pinkett Smith decided to leave the bright lights of Hollywood behind in favor of the opportunities awaiting her in the Big Apple. There she accepted the role of the villain Fish Mooney in the Batman universe show "Gotham," and immersed herself in a world away from her family. Pinkett Smith also had ample time to be by herself and meditate on what her next move would be.

The decision to uproot her life and head to New York City couldn't have been an easy one for Jada Pinkett Smith to make. But, looking back, the actress feels it was definitely the right move as she wasn't sure what her future would look like. "There was definitely a time in my career, or have been several times, that I put it to the side and had no intention of returning," she confessed to Fox News. 

Fortunately, the work she did during this time turned out to be exactly what she needed. "Gotham kind of sparked me in a new creative way to bring me back into the industry, because I was definitely on the verge of letting it go, for sure," she continued.

After scoring a role in "Gotham," Pinkett Smith went on to snag parts in several high-profile Hollywood films, including "Magic Mike XXL" in 2015 and "Bad Moms" in 2016, as noted by her IMDb profile. It would seem that Pinkett Smith was anything but done and, instead, still had a few tricks up her sleeve.

In addition to "Magic Mike XXL" and "Bad Moms," Jada Pinkett Smith was also cast in the 2016 comedy "Girls Trip," along with Queen Latifah, Regina Hall, and Tiffany Haddish. Given that there were some raunchy scenes in the film, it was a departure for Pinkett Smith — but she was 100 percent on board after reading the script. "I always like doing stuff that people won't expect me to do," she shared in a chat with Entertainment Tonight.

In particular, Pinkett Smith was referring to a scene in which her character accidentally "[pees] on a crowd" of people while sitting in a swing, something very few people would expect of Pinkett Smith. "But the Jada that I am definitely would," she continued. "That's the part that's hilarious."

All jokes aside, Pinkett Smith also loved "Girls Trip" because of the camaraderie that it showed between Black women. "What really filled my heart with so much joy was that, not only was this movie embraced by Black women, but it was embraced by women of all cultures that found something relatable in this movie," she told Elle.

The true herald of the long-awaited Jada-sance was the debut of the actress' talk show, Red Table Talk, in 2018. Featuring Jada Pinkett Smith alongside her daughter and mother, the program was inspired by Pinkett Smith's real-life experiences. "I guess at this point in my life, I've really been doing a lot of interior work," she explained in an interview with NPR. "The women and the people who had the courage to be very transparent with me with certain aspects of their journey really, really helped my journey tremendously." That made her wonder why people don't talk so candidly more often.

The women on Red Table Talk address all sorts of hot-button issues, including race, sexuality, infidelity, and family. The goal? To have real discussions that help not only those at the table, but the millions of people who watch it. "I really want to create conversation where people don't have to feel like they're alone," Pinkett Smith continued. 

On a pleasant May evening in 2019, Jada Pinkett Smith and her family stepped out onto the red carpet at the premiere of "Aladdin," in which Will Smith played the genie. Well, if you saw Willow Smith that night in her stunning deep V, open-back gown your jaw probably dropped — and so did Jada's. "I looked to Will and said, 'Dude, this is probably the first time I realized, like, I'm Mom,'" she revealed in a chat with The Cut. "Those days for me — the legs out, back out at the same time, that's over." Of course, Pinkett Smith knows full-well that she could do it, but she just doesn't want to anymore. 

She isn't mad about it though, or even salty. "It's a moment between a mother and daughter when you realize, 'It's okay, she's got the ingenue hot. That space is over for you, boo,'" she continued. No matter what flavor of hot Jada feels these days, it's obvious that she just gets more gorgeous with age. 

Over the years, Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith's marriage has been the subject of much public scrutiny, as reported by Vulture. Did they or didn't they have an open marriage? Have either of them had a relationship with anyone else? It's no wonder that on several occasions, the couple took to social media to halt the gears of the rumor mill.

However, things came to a boil in 2020 when musician August Alsina publicly stated that he and Jada had been romantically involved in the past. He claimed that they had Will's blessing, but in the end, he felt he'd given too much time to someone who ultimately didn't reciprocate his feelings. With everything blowing up, Jada announced on Twitter that she was calling herself to the red table.

In the episode, Will and Jada cleared the air. Jada admitted to having an "entanglement" with Alsina and clarified that it had happened when she and Will were broken up. And while the conversation was certainly tense in parts, in the end the couple was giggling together as usual, confirming that you go through a lot with your ride-or-die.

What a life Jada Pinkett Smith has had! From a poverty-stricken neighborhood in Baltimore to the highest echelon of Hollywood royalty, Pinkett Smith has a lot to be proud of. With a film and television résumé that spans decades, a successful marriage, and gorgeous children that are already making waves in the world, Pinkett Smith has seriously undergone a stunning transformation.

But it's in her later years that the star has finally been able to be successful on her own terms, no longer hampered by previous obstacles. "As an older woman, you really have to set out to carve your own lane," she proclaimed in an interview with The Cut. "I'm carving my own lane." Plus, as an example, she told the outlet,"Angela Bassett was homeboy's mom in Black Panther. A queen bee, you know, and she didn't lose her sexy."

Jada Pinkett Smith first opened up on "Red Table Talk" about being diagnosed with alopecia in response to being questioned about why she was frequently wearing turbans. Admitting that the hair loss had been a struggle, Pinkett Smith said in 2018, "It was terrifying when it first started. You know, I was in the shower one day, and then just handfuls of hair just in my hands. I was like, 'Oh my God, am I going bald?'" The actor also revealed that she initially attempted to combat the issue by switching up her hairstyle and getting shorter asymmetrical cuts. As explained by the American Academy of Dermatology Association, alopecia is an autoimmune disease where your immune system mistakenly attacks your hair follicles resulting in hair loss.

After revealing her diagnosis, Pinkett Smith continued to be open about her journey with alopecia. In 2021, the "Gotham" actor posted a video on Instagram showing off a bald line on her head. The star also joked that she would place rhinestones on the line to make "a little crown." Her caption ended with the declaration, "Me and this alopecia are going to be friends ... period!"

Similarly, during a 2021 episode of "Red Table Talk," Pinkett Smith revealed that her husband Will Smith has been supportive of her hair loss. "He loves it," she declared after guest Tiffany Haddish asked what he thought of her new look.

After the infamous incident at the 2022 Oscars between Chris Rock and Will Smith, plenty of fans were curious to know what Jada Pinkett Smith thought about the whole ordeal. While Pinkett Smith hasn't officially commented on her partner's shocking display, a source reportedly told Us Weekly that the "Red Table Talk" host wasn't pleased with the incident. "It was in the heat of the moment and it was him overreacting. He knows that, she knows that. They're in agreement that he overreacted," the insider claimed. The source additionally alleged that Pinkett Smith didn't want the "King Richard" star to defend her honor, stating that she is a strong woman who could take care of herself.

On the other hand, Buzzfeed and Entertainment Tonight reported that unaired clips showed Pinkett Smith's initial reaction to the slap. In the video, she appeared to laugh and clap as Rock declared, "Will Smith just slapped the s**t out of me." Still, in the aftermath of the event, Pinkett Smith seemed to respond to the incident with an Instagram quote that stated, "This is a season for healing and I'm here for it." While the post didn't address the issue by name, a source alleged to Us Weekly that the family was purposefully avoiding talking about the Oscars moment. "They know the best course of action is to stay tight-lipped," the insider reportedly claimed before additionally stating, "The only healer is time."

Jada Pinkett Smith had no doubts before getting involved in the return of the "Matrix" as Niobe, albeit an aged Niobe this time around. As she told Entertainment Weekly, "I love The Matrix and I love the story and I love what it offers to the world, but sometimes you show up for people to be part of the journey." Pinkett Smith said that she wanted to be there to support the film's director Lana Wachowski.

Pinkett Smith stated that Niobe's look for the film was hardly a quick decision. She and Wachowski "went through a couple different versions of Niobe" before settling on the older one that appears on the screen.

While speaking at an IGN-hosted premiere for the film, Pinkett Smith revealed that the process to transform herself into this version of the character was hardly an easy feat. "It was a bit challenging, you know, but ... five hours of makeup. And it wasn't until I actually had the makeup on that it clicked," the actor stated. However, she added that becoming Niobe wasn't just about the look — it was also about how she portrayed the character. "I really had to think about it, just as far as, like, my body, my voice — all of those things."

There has been plenty of controversy regarding Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith's marriage recently, and a newly resurfaced clip has stirred up even more drama for the Hollywood couple. As reported by the New York Post, the 2018 clip came from Pinkett Smith's show "Red Table Talk." In the episode, the actor sat down with her mother, Adrienne Banfield-Norris, her husband, Will Smith, and the couple's daughter, Willow Smith. In the video, Pinkett Smith claimed that she never wanted to marry her now-husband but felt pressured by her family to tie the knot. "I never wanted to be married," she said. "We only got married because Gammy [Pinkett Smith's mother] was crying," Smith responded while laughing.

Pinkett Smith agreed, saying that she felt like her mother treated the situation as if there was no possible alternative to the couple getting hitched. While Banfield-Norris responded that she didn't quite remember things the same way, she agreed that their wedding was awful. "It was a mess. Jada was sick. She was very unpleasant ... She didn't cooperate with anything," Banfield-Norris said. Similarly, the "Girl's Trip" star declared, "I was so upset that I had to have a wedding. I was so pissed I went crying down the freaking aisle. I cried the whole way down the aisle." Still, the Smiths both ultimately agreed that their marriage was the right choice, even if the ceremony itself wasn't ideal.