The 94th Academy Awards went off without incident on March 27, 2022 (well, almost), until host Chris Rock cracked a bad celebrity joke. Oscar guests, viewers, and Chris himself didn’t have much time to figure out what was going on before Will Smith got up and quickly walked over to the comedian. On stage, it looks like Will punched Chris in the face. But did he really do it? Or was it all part of a show?
Will Smith seems to have punched Chris Rock at the Oscars
Chris took the stage at the Dolby Theater during the latter part of the Academy Awards, and he started cracking jokes at some of the celebrities in attendance. In particular, he made a joke on “GI Jane 2” for Jada Pinkett-Smith, who has a shaved head and who has never hidden that she suffers from alopecia.
Viewers saw Will approach Chris and punch him. However, the audio and video quickly cut out – and when they returned, Will was no longer on stage and Chris was (impressively) calm and continuing the program undisturbed.
Celebrities and everyday people alike immediately took to Twitter to try to figure out what happened between Chris and Will.
https://twitter.com/MehdiOmais/status/1508341481437810697
Did Will Smith Really Slap Chris Rock?
It turns out Will really slapped Chris, according to The Associated Press. It wasn’t staged.
“Wow. Wow, Will Smith just slapped me,” a stunned Chris said after Will walked away to sit down again.
Chris then declared, “It was the best night in television history,” before awkwardly returning to the presentation of the Best Documentary award.
Variety posted a video of the altercation, and you can see Will saying the words “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth” after attacking Chris.
Here’s the moment Chris Rock made a “G.I. Jane 2” joke about Jada Pinkett Smith, prompting Will Smith to punch him and yell, “Leave my wife’s name out of your f–king mouth.” #Oscars pic.twitter.com/kHTZXI6kuL
— Variety (@Variety) March 28, 2022
Will Smith won his first Oscar for The Williams Method
Later in the show, Will ended up winning the Best Actor Oscar for portraying Richard Williams, father of tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams, in The Williams Way. He took the stage to accept the award, quickly becoming emotional.
“Richard Williams was a fierce advocate for his family,” Will began. “At this time in my life, right now, I am overwhelmed with what God is calling me to do and be in this world. By making this film, I was able to protect Aunjanue Ellis, who is one of the strongest and most delicate people I have ever met. I had to protect Saniyya (Sidney) and Demi (Singleton), the two actresses who played Venus and Serena. »
He continues: “I am called in my life to love people and to protect people and to be a river for my people. I know that to do what we do, you have to be able to take abuse. You have to be able to let people say anything about you. In this business, you have to be able to have people who disrespect you. And you have to smile and pretend that everything is fine. »
Will then expressed regret
“I want to apologize to the Academy. I want to apologize to all my fellow nominees,” he said.
“It’s a beautiful moment and I’m not crying for winning an award. It’s not about winning a prize for me. It’s about being able to shine a light on all the people – Tim and Trevor and Zack and Saniyya and Demi and Aunjanue and the whole team at The Method Williams, Venus and Serena, the whole Williams family. Art imitates life. I look like the mad father, as they said of Richard Williams. »
We’ll be sure to keep you posted as more information becomes known about the altercation.
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