Comedian Kevin Hart, 46, has reeled back on being so open about not being faithful in his marriage to his first wife Torrei Hart (née Skipper), 47.
The former pair married in 2003 before separating in 2010, citing irreconcilable differences. The parents of a daughter, Heaven (born March 2005), and a son, Hendrix (born November 2007), finalized the divorce in 2011.
Two years later, Kevin, who turned his infidelity into jokes, filmed his “Let Me Explain” comedy special at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. The 2013 stand-up helped him as a comic reach mainstream success.
“Lying will ruin your goddamn life. Lying ruined my marriage. … That’s a lie. I cheated,” Kevin told the MSG crowd. The Philadelphia native went on to say that he did not regret stepping out on his wife.
Kevin admitted, “You can’t evolve as a man if you never make mistakes. The only way you can be perfect is to f–k up. I get it, I f–ked up… Do I think cheating was the problem? No, I don’t. Cheating was not the problem. Lying about cheating was the problem.”
A clip of the “Let Me Explain” cheating bit was uploaded to YouTube. The video’s comment section was filled with varied reactions to Kevin’s comedic retelling of his adulterous ways.
“Yeah, this guy has no remorse,” wrote one person. A second person posted, “Naaaaw, Kevin. We [are] not cosigning this. I know it’s comedy but just naw, BRUH.”
One commenter suggested Kevin abandoned his moral values by posting, “Not funny at the expense of his wife. Puts it in his act. Now he’s everywhere, sold his soul.”
“I don’t get why people find cheating humor funny. One of the worst things you can do to someone. It’s messed up,” yet another online critic wrote.
Kevin also scored praise. For instance, a supporter commented, “One of his greatest shows.” Additionally, a fan of the “Ride Along” actor declared, “There is no one funnier than Kevin Hart.”
Throughout his career, Kevin has regularly used stories and moments from his personal life as topics for his comedy routines. Torrei, who also happens to be a comdian and played a heavy role in the early parts of his career, eventually asked her ex-husband to leave her out of his jokes.
“I was like ‘Kev, the last Netflix special… before I was getting paid off them jokes.’ I’m like ‘None of that money’s coming to me anymore,’ So, yes, stop putting me in the jokes, because I just don’t like it anymore,” Torrei revealed in a 2022 interview on “The Culture Club.”
She continued, “That’s when he started realizing, like, ‘Oh yeah. OK. You’re right.‘ So that’s when a turning point happened for us, and when I got out of the material more, [our relationship] became better.”
Kevin and Torrei’s daughter, Heaven, has also shared her desire for her father not to talk about her at his shows. The now-20-year-old college student expressed that she wasn’t fond of it during a “60 Minutes” segment with her dad in 2024.
“Some of [the jokes] definitely suck. Why is he blowing my business out there? He’s a little sneaky guy,” Heaven told journalist Anderson Cooper as Kevin stood beside her for the interview.
“Why is he blowing my business out there?” says Kevin Hart’s daughter, Heaven. He’s promised to not talk about his daughter in his stand-up routines. https://t.co/SBOZM5T0CB pic.twitter.com/dwlKFyZcYE
— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) April 24, 2024
Kevin admitted Heaven became “more vocal” about him making her the butt of his jokes for millions of people’s enjoyment. He decided to respect his oldest child’s request.
“As your kid grows older, you have to be a little more conscious of what you’re doing based off of what they feel and what they like and what they don’t, and I made a promise to her, so I haven’t talked about her since,” Kevin said to Cooper.
The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor recipient also stated, “She gave me a hard threat.” Heaven interjected, “I did. I threatened him.” Kevin then responded, “So I stood on it. I appreciated it.”
In addition to being the father of Heaven and her brother Hendrix, Kevin has two children with his present wife, Eniko Hart (née Parrish). The pair married in 2016 after being engaged for two years.
Kevin and Eniko’s first child, a son named Kenzo, arrived in November 2017. Their daughter Kaori was born in September 2020. Like with his first marriage, Kevin also cheated on Eniko. They were able to reconcile following the public scandal.
‘This Guy Has No Remorse’: Kevin Hart’s Jokes About Ruining His First Marriage By Cheating on Ex-Wife Torrei Keep Coming Back to Haunt Him