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Why Did Will Smith Slap Chris Rock?

This year’s Oscars ceremony was a lot different from the ones we have had over the years. Everyone was taken aback by the controversial incident that occurred. Obviously the incident being Will Smith slapping one of the hosts of the night, Chris Rock

The Oscars ceremony is probably the most colossal night in the whole year. It features the Hollywood’s finest be-seated next to each other to find out who conquered the cinema the following year. The Oscar is considered as the most influential and prestigious award and many great actors just hope of winning it one day let alone dreaming of being nominated for a category. 

Subsequently, Will Smith was upon those lucky people who won the prestigious award in 2022. He won it for his role in King Richard that was released in 2021. However, his award wasn’t the focal point of the whole ceremony. It was rather a violent misconduct towards Chris Rock that took the internet by storm. 

Will Smith Slaps Chris Rock

The Prince of Belair went on stage in the middle of the ceremony and slapped Chris Rock because he made a joke on Will Smith’s wife. It appears, Will wasn’t completely on board with the joke Chris made on Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved hair. Chris related her to the famous film character G.I Jane. Although it must be mentioned that Jada had been struggling with cancer for a lot of time now. She started developing symptoms of hair loss in 2018. 

Why Did Will Smith Slap Chris Rock

 “Jada, GI Jane 2, I can’t wait to see it,” said Chris Rock. Jada herself didn’t feel entirely comfortable with the joke Chris had made and seemed rather exasperated. Although Will Smith couldn’t handle his ex-wife’s being dishonoured like that and decided to take matters into his own hands, quite literally. He imminently stormed towards the stage and slapped Chris Rock in front of a glorious crowd. As a result, Chris tried to soften the incident by rubbing his cheeks. “Wow, Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me.” – said Chris Rock whilst smiling. 

Did Will Smith Apologise?

Well yes, Will Smith shared a public apology towards Chris Rock through his Instagram handle. “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris,” Will wrote. “I was out of line and I was wrong. I’m embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”

Will also lent an apology to the Academy and the actor’s roaster that was nominated alongside him. “I want to apologise to the Academy, I want to apologise to all my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment.” – Will said whilst crying after winning the Oscar for Best Actor. 

Academy’s Response 

The Academy was as shocked as everyone else and decided to ask Will Smith to leave the ceremony after violating a host. However, Will immediately “refused” to leave the premises. 

“At the next board meeting on 18 April, the Academy may take any disciplinary action, which may include suspension, expulsion, or other sanctions,” stated the academy. 

A day after the incident had occurred, the Academy released another statement saying: “The Academy condemns the actions of Mr Smith at last night’s show,”