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Will Smith's son Trey and their complicated relationship explored

The Oscar winner is a father-of-three


jada pinkett smith will smith© Photo: Getty Images
Ahad Sanwari
Ahad Sanwari - New York
Senior WriterNew York
January 18, 2023
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Will Smith has maintained an image over the years of being all about his family and has championed them whenever the opportunity arises.

However, while his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith and children Willow and Jaden have established themselves as stars in their own right, his lesser explored dynamics are those with his first wife, Sheree Zampino, and particularly eldest son Trey.

What has Will and Trey's relationship been like over the years? Are the pair close now? Read on to learn about the father-son dynamic.

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Will and Sheree were married from 1992 to 1995, welcoming Trey during the first year of their marriage, with him having turned 30 this past November.

The pair were initially close, with him even making an appearance in his father's 1998 music video for Just the Two of Us.

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However, following his parents' divorce, marriage to Jada in 1997, and the subsequent birth of Jaden and Willow, there emerged a distance between Will and his son.

Over the years, they grew further apart, and it was not till many years down the line that Will began to reconnect once again with his ex-wife and son thanks to the intervention of Jada.

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Will acknowledged their strained relationship in a candid 2018 video

Eventually, they grew close as a complete family unit, with Sheree and Jada establishing a tight friendship and Trey developing a bond with his step-siblings, even appearing on Red Table Talk several times.

Will acknowledged that their relationship used to be strained in a 2018 video he shared during a vacation with Trey.

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"It has not always been like this between Trey & I. We STRUGGLED FOR YEARS after my divorce from his Mother. He felt betrayed & abandoned. It is a wild blessing to recover & restore a loving relationship with my beautiful son!" he penned.

Sheree even commented on it: "Awwwwwwwww...thank you baby daddy!!!!!! I love you back! And thank you @treysmith0011 for being the reason we came together. And to @jadapinkettsmith for being an understanding, secure, and absolutely AMAZING wife, mother, Bonus-mom, and Co-parenting partner!"

will smith and his kids© Photo: Instagram

Trey and his step-siblings Jaden and Willow are incredibly close

The two now frequently cite each other as their "best friend," with Trey even being present to see his father accept an Oscar for King Richard last year.

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