On Sunday night in what was probably the most interesting thing to happen at The Academy Awards in decades, actor Will Smith left his seat to smack Oscar presenter Chris Rock squarely—and for real—across the face. The comedian had just made a joke vaguely referencing the hair loss of Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, saying, “Jada, I love you, Jada. Can’t wait to see G.I. Jane 2.”
As the joke sunk in, Smith’s face could be seen going from laughter to rage. And as they say, that’s when the fight broke out. Smith strode angrily onto the stage from his front-row seat in the audience to confront a clearly surprised Rock. Standing directly in front of him, Smith struck Rock once across the face.
Watch and you be the judge: After Chris Rock made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith, her husband Will Smith went on stage and appeared to punch the comedian. #Oscars pic.twitter.com/gOWgIwTuc0
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) March 28, 2022
After the slap, Smith stomped to his seat and cursed at Rock telling him several times to “keep my wife’s name out of your [expletive] mouth!” For his part, a shocked Rock quickly regained his composure and exclaimed, “Oh wow, wow. Will Smith just smacked the [expletive] outta me” and “Wow, dude. It was a G.I. Jane joke” before proceeding to present the nominees for the best documentary.
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In the theater, the confused audience was reduced to stunned silence amid misplaced nervous laughter as they tried to figure out if the altercation was real or part of the show. Sadly, it was real. For the television audience, the networks cut the audio, but the Twitterverse captured it here on the uncensored Japanese feed.
Meanwhile, the Twitterverse was also left to ponder the realness of the slap while simultaneously exploding with shock, laughter, indignation, and praise—or as I like to call it, Sunday night.
That was definitely a Bel-Air slap not a Philly slap
— Andy Swan, M.C. (@AndySwan) March 28, 2022
Ha, ha! We see what you did there. He “got in one little fight” and now Will is the one “up to no good, makin’ trouble in my neighborhood.”
I’m no biologist but Will Smith hits like a girl https://t.co/j5fb5RqY7P
— Kaelan Dorr (@KDORR_USA) March 28, 2022
Ah, leave it to Twitter and GETTR to go straight to politics!
Glad Chris Rock didn't tell a joke about Alec Baldwin's wife.
— Jon Gabriel (@exjon) March 28, 2022
Oh my! Too soon? Nah, it’s Twitter, where everyone shoots from the hip.
Kinda think having an open marriage is more of an insult to the husband or wife than a lame joke made by a comedian who was or wasn’t aware that the wife had an autoimmune issue. Everything is stupid and all for clicks.
— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) March 28, 2022
Everything is definitely stupid, especially in Hollywood, where sleeping around is a-ok, but jokes are fighting words and apparently, violence is acceptable as long as you’re an A-lister. Where was security at the Oscars? That thought ought to haunt every one of those well-heeled stars, especially since the aggressor wasn’t a MAGA-hat-wearing rioter but one of their own. Ban all hands! If it saves just one cheek!
Chris Rock was a bigger man than Will Smith tonight. That is a fact.
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) March 28, 2022
Agreed, Rock handled the situation well at the time, but it’s what he does afterward that counts. Luckily for Smith, for now at least, Rock has declined to press charges. But is that a good thing? Since when is violence okay?
Los Angeles Police Department statement: "LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program. The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report." (1/2)
— Lois Beckett (@loisbeckett) March 28, 2022
One has to wonder why Rock isn’t pressing charges. If he doesn’t, it’s almost as if he’s condoning what Smith did. Is it now acceptable for performers to be physically attacked for their work simply because it hurts someone’s feelings? This is a watershed moment for comedy and for Hollywood. Will political correctness and hurt feelings win over artistic license? If so, humor really is dead.
Later in the evening, slapper Will Smith won the Oscar for Best Actor. In his acceptance speech, Smith likened the altercation with Rock to his role in King Richard, saying, “he’d do anything for his family.” Yeah, Will, assaulting a comedian for telling a joke you don’t like is exactly like a dad training his daughters to be world-class tennis players or something. One takes zero self-discipline and the other takes nothing but self-discipline. Smith really needs to own this and not just pay lip service by apologizing to the Academy. In its storied past, the Academy has blackballed and punished actors for far less than what Smith did live on worldwide television. Will the Academy uphold its code of conduct standards and punish Will Smith by revoking his Best Actor Oscar? If not, why not?
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