Jodie Turner-Smith filed for divorce from ex-husband Joshua Jackson less than a year ago, but wishes him the best, including in his romantic life.
The “Queen & Slim” and “The Acolyte” star says she supports Jackson's relationship with Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o, telling the Cut in an interview published Friday, “good for them.” After Turner-Smith filed for divorce from her in October, Jackson and Nyong'o sparked dating speculation in December when paparazzi released photos of the two together in public.
Weeks after news of Turner-Smith's divorce filing broke, Nyong'o revealed on Instagram that she had broken up with TV personality Selema Masekela amid accusations of “cheating” and “heartbreak.” In December, Jackson and Nyong'o were seen holding hands in Joshua Tree and shopping at an Erewhon. Earlier this year, paparazzi spotted the duo kissing on the beach while on vacation in Mexico.
Turner-Smith, 37, and Jackson, 46, secretly married in August 2019 and share a son, born in April 2020. Their four-year-old daughter, Juno Rose Diana Jackson, is instrumental in the opening of Turner-Smith to Jackson's romance with Nyong'o. , explained the “After Yang” actor.
“We need happiness to be able to co-parent peacefully. I'm trying to get us to Gwyneth. [Paltrow] and the level of Chris Martin,” he told the Cut. “I really hope they are happy and that it benefits us as a family.”
In 2019, Turner-Smith broke out with a lead role in Lena Waithe and Melina Matsoukas' “Queen & Slim,” appearing as Queen opposite “Get Out” star Daniel Kaluuya's Slim. Her biggest debut moment came when several tabloids identified Turner-Smith, including at the film's premiere, simply as Jackson's “girlfriend.”
“It was taking away a moment that I needed to have on my own,” he told the Cut.
She added: “It opened up a very painful conversation for the world about who I was with and how right or wrong it was to be with that person. And when you're pregnant, it's like the most vulnerable time of your life.”
Since “Queen & Slim,” Turner-Smith has appeared in several film and television projects, including Kogonada’s “After Yang” alongside Colin Farrell, Noah Baumbach’s “White Noise,” and several episodes of Netflix’s “Sex Education.” She most recently appeared in the latest Star Wars spin-off series, “The Acolyte.”
For Turner-Smith, the divorce is not a failure, she said in a February interview with the Times of London. Rather, it is a time to move forward.
“The bravest thing in the world is to recognize when something is not working and make a decision, and I always want to set that example for my daughter,” she said.
