Let’s go ahead and get this out of the way: Tasha Smith and Michael Jai White used to date. That was more than 12 years ago. Now they’re both happily married to other people, and unlike the characters they made famous in Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? films, their relationship ended rather amicably. And it’s a good thing, too, considering that since 2007 they’ve been hired to act as if they’re a couple, fight as a couple and— ahem—make up as a couple. As of November, they have reprised their roles in a new Perry TV show on TBS, For Better
or Worse, a grown-up twist to what we’ve come to expect from Perry’s television work.
In other words, this one isn’t for the kids.
This show is funny, at times gripping, and it’ll be relationship therapy without the co-pay for viewers. In it, we see a matured Marcus and a muted Angela, but we’re allowed a more intimate look into their everyday life as a married couple. We also en- counter Marcus’ baby mama, who’s in a new relationship, and a couple who has been shacking up for a few years.
Should this show find the same success of other Perry projects, it’ll be on the air for years. And that only means one thing: more time for Smith and White to pucker up for the camera.
“Look, Michael is like my big brother,” says Smith. “I mean, hey, I’ve slept with the guy before, and it can be a little awkward when we’re working together. I’m married now. He’s married now. And I don’t want his wife to be thinking, ‘Is something going on here?!’ No. It’s not like that. We ain’t into each other. That’s my boy; he’s my teammate.”
White agrees. “We’re the best of friends.
Even to this day, we’ve never had any big disagreements. At least, not ones that I ever knew about,” he says, chuckling. “Friendship is the most important part of a relationship, and when we dated, she was in a place that I wasn’t. I have always been extremely proud of the woman she is and the woman she’s turned out to be. There’s a love and a friend- ship that’s always been there and always will be."
