Chris Rock has opened up about the end of his marriage, acknowledging that he made serious mistakes and wasn’t a good husband.
In a recent interview, the 61-year-old comedian said several issues contributed to the divorce. He said he cheated on his wife and had been addicted to pornography, which he stopped watching about five or six years ago.
Rock described his infidelity as something he wasn’t proud of, but said it was part of what he had to confront.
He compared his behavior to a character in a Marvel movie who gets powers and pushes limits before realizing they aren’t all-powerful. Rock said he had tested his own limits by cheating, and that the experience left him severely humbled.
Rock and Malaak Compton-Rock married in 1996. They separated in 2014, and their divorce was finalized in 2016. They have two daughters, Lola and Zahra.
Rock recently directed “Misty Green,” his first film as a director in 12 years. He said his divorce was one reason for the gap. Getting through it took time, he explained, and afterward he needed to earn money, so he went on tour and focused on putting his life back together. The pandemic and other complications added to the delay.
“Misty Green” follows an award-winning actress trying to revive her career after years of watching it fade. Rock plays a casting director who has worked with her before.
While discussing the film, Rock said he had wanted to make a movie about Los Angeles as a place of contrasts: a city known for its sunshine and palm trees, where people also pass unhoused residents on the street.
He has described Los Angeles as complicated, with priorities that can seem out of balance. In the film, he said, expensive homes sit alongside people sleeping outside, a contrast that captures the city’s contradictions.
