Why did Will Smith slap Chris Rock at the Oscars?

[Lerkot]

2 hours ago, fan 4ever said:

I totally agree. He has been posting these inspirational videos for years but when it comes to apologizing for one of the biggest media storms in years he just puts up some text? Not enough if you ask me.

Might be coming a longer video on the topic.

We're accustomed to everything happening within five minutes these days... for no good reason. If it is like Puff Daddy or Piff Diddy - or whatever his name is - says, that they made up, then the vultures (us and the media) should just go take a chill pill because Will and Chris really dont owe us anything... Will/Jada were hurt by words, Chris by a slap, for us it was harmless.

[analogue]

17 hours ago, JumpinJack AJ said:

The lyrics from "I Wish I Made That" definitely haven't aged well as of last night.

"Whoop somebody ass, taking my boot out

right on TV, so all y'all can see me

Just ignorant, attacking, acting rough..."

 

A friend in the music industry made a since-deleted comment about how the movie industry pushes violence and explicit language in their projects. Movie goes eat it up. Now some want to be critical of a slap. 

Neither as Mr. Nice Guy 

''But aah, Calm down Wille
You don't wanna drop the bomb now Wille
Keep a nice flow for your mom down in Philly
On the news you go if you blow and act silly''

[Ale]

An interview with Will's mom:

https://abc7.com/will-smith-oscars-slap-2022-chris-rock-mother-carolyn/11688841/

[JumpinJack AJ]

7 hours ago, Hero1 said:

Interesting take on Will's apology here: https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/awards/oscars/will-smiths-oscars-apology-smacks-of-insincerity/news-story/19583b07a0208f557b2cf8724f69e094

I think the writer, like many people, made up their mind that the apology wasn't good enough before it was even issued. They don't approve of Will and that's fine.  He did something rash and now he'll pay the consequences.  This is clearly seen in the very first line - "in the cold, harsh light of global condemnation".   Really?  Because there are many people who have justified his act by Chris' tactless joke.  This is just as much an opinion article as it is a news article.

Was Chris Rock hanging out during the commercial breaks?  I highly doubt it.  It would have been foolish for him to.  If he was, he would have gotten attention from his peers, too.  Will is clearly in the wrong, but you can't say that Chris is in the right. 

As for partying afterward, what else are you going to do?  When you see the pictures taken after he won, Will definitely looks a bit off. He's processing the wrong he did.  He knew he was going to have to really face it the next day.  He was troubled and wanted to get a few hours of distraction.  I can't be mad at that. 

Look, this happened less than 48 hours ago.  The aftermath has just started.  It's silly to say what his "good enough" in terms of his following actions.  For some people, no apology would ever be good enough. For some people, it would have never been fast enough.  

[JumpinJack AJ]

This just in...

https://radaronline.com/p/will-smith-talking-chris-rock-smack-jada-red-table-talk/

Will Smith & Jada To Break Silence About Chris Rock Oscars Smack On 'Red Table Talk'

By:Ryan Naumann

Mar. 28 2022, Published 11:47 a.m. ET

Will Smith is turning down invites from Good Morning America and The Today Show to talk about the Chris Rock incident and has decided he will spill his guts on Jada Pinkett-Smith’s Red Table Talk.

Sources close to the situation tell Radar, Will and his team have been bombarded with offers from outlets pleading with the Academy Award winner to choose them as his outlet to talk about Chris.

However, we’re told Will and Jada had a conversation where they agreed the situation will be addressed on Jada’s super-successful Facebook show.

Will skipped the press line last night after winning the Best Actor award for his role in King Richard. We’re told he even refused to talk to reporters at the afterparties.

 

 

SOURCE: MEGA

Sources tell us Will and Jada will tape the episode as early as this week. The famous couple feels like this is the best platform for him to explain his side of things clearly — with him being invited to next year’s ceremony in limbo after he got physical with the comedian.

As Radar previously reported, Chris appeared to announce the Best Documentary Feature Film award but decided to do a set of jokes before revealing the winner.

He decided to come for Jada's appearance by making a joke about her being bald. He said the actress was ready to appear in GI Jane 2 — a reference to the 1997 Demi Moore film that she famously shaved her head to get into the role.

The issue is Jada has been open about her struggle with alopecia — a condition that can cause an individual to lose their hair. It affects every person different and hair loss can be temporary or permanent.

Jada was not impressed with the joke and clearly Will noticed his wife being upset. He immediately sprung into action and quickly walked up the stage to Chis.

He proceeded to smack the comedian in the face, turn around, and then walk back to his seat.

 

Chris Rock acknowledge the smack but then continued on with handing out the award. During the commercial break, Denzel Washington and Tyler Perry walked up to talk to Will.

Will's publicist Meredith O'Sullivan was seen doing damage control in the moments after the on-stage slap.

Chris has yet to make a public statement but declined to press charges against Will.

During his acceptance speech, Will seemed to talk about the moment telling the crowd, "I know to do what we do, you gotta be able to take abuse, and you gotta be able to have people talk crazy about you. In this business, you gotta be able to have people disrespecting you and you gotta smile and you gotta pretend like that‘s OK."

He added, "But Richard Williams, and what I loved, thank you D. Denzel (Washington) said to me a few minutes ago, he said, “At your highest moment, be careful. That’s when the devil comes for you.”

[Hero1]

Jada using Will's mental breakdown for some views on her red table talk I find extremely unsavoury. Wasn't the entanglement episode of that enough humiliation for Will? And now she is going to do it again with more of her psycho-babble? Not happy about this at all. Will get away from that toxicity and get back to being yourself.

[JumpinJack AJ]

I'm struggling with the ideal that that what we saw was part of a mental breakdown.  Sure, it could be, but at the same time, sometimes stuff just happens.  I don't know.  I do know that by doing it this way, Will can't be directed in what he says.  This easily the kind of situation where he could be misquoted.  Being misquoted is why people like Rev Run and Michael Jackson rarely do/did interviews. When I first heard the news of what went down, my next thought was "there will be a Red Table Talk." 

[fan 4ever]

Don’t know what to think about this. I’m not surprised they are doing a Red Table talk about it, kinda saw it coming. I wonder how it will play out. The only way this could really work is if they invited Chris Rock, sit down and have a openminded conversation. But then again, is it really necessary to do that publicly? Maybe they should handle it in private. But I guess that’s what society has come to.

Edited March 29, 2022 by fan 4ever

[gosia]

Another day in the PR circus https://nypost.com/2022/03/29/most-americans-blame-chris-rock-over-viral-will-smith-slap/amp/ 

[Big Willie]

I took a minute to process the incident and the night in general before posting on here, it hit home for personal reasons, that I’ll explain, and it also took me a while to try and understand what developed and why. 

After deliberation, obviously violence is never the answer. It’s inexcusable, but, it’s also understandable based on what has been revealed to us in recent months and years. I saw a broken man, at his breaking point, that’s lived pretty much flawlessly over nearly four decades in the public eye. 

After reading WILL, it opened my eyes to that lack of acceptance Will has always had, and his strive to ‘put right’ what he got wrong as a kid. Namely, his inaction when his father would abuse his mother, both physically and mentally. I believe this played a part in the spur of the moment decision to act when he felt his wife was attacked. 

Another thing that came to mind is his obsession to not fail, think back to when Sheree divorced Will, and he refused because ‘I don’t get divorced’. He was willing to stay in a marriage he wasn’t happy in because of his commitment to the decision he made. Fast forward to the ‘Entanglement’ and we have a carbon copy of the fight to save his marriage, that got turned into memes and internet trends, namely of Will crying when emotional speaking of his wife’s affair with someone he’d brought into his home to help. 

I also believe Will becomes so engrossed in roles that he wants to embody what Richard Williams stands for in terms of defence towards his wife and children, and with them all being women, it’s overlapped into Wills personal life. Not just with Jada and his kids, but with the cast and crew of the movie, also.  

Now, you’re Will Smith, you’ve made the decision to stand by your wife and forgive her sleeping with another man, almost having the acceptance because she was facing her own demons. I do have my opinion on Jada and what damage she may be causing to Will, but in this instance, you have to take it at face value that he chose to forgive and move on, so we should to. 

You get to a point when Jada opens up about her autoimmune disease that results in Alopecia, and in her darkest moments dealing with her hair loss, she had suicidal thoughts and intentions, but managed to pluck up the courage to eventually embrace the situation and use it as fuel to encourage other sufferers of the disease. It’s important to remember that it goes much further than just simple vanity. 

As a husband myself, and being married to a woman that suffers with mental health, namely Agoraphobia, I’ve witnessed the lows that nobody else sees, I’ve witnessed the brave face that everybody else thinks is natural, and I’ve also seen the small innocuous comments, that the majority would brush off, bring her entire world crashing down faster than what seems imaginable. But it happens. 

Now, put yourself in the shoes of Will, sweeping the awards season, a favourite to achieve his first Oscar, an award he’s been openly chasing for two decades since his first nomination. You’re on top of the world, embracing the moment. This is the best your career could ever be, the pinnacle. Someone then makes a joke in poor taste, about the women you love, on what’s supposed to be the biggest night of your career, and you glance over to your wife and she isn’t impressed. I believe Will unlocked some inner demons he’d buried writing WILL, I believe he’s reeling from being humiliated about the ‘Entanglement’, I believe he’s bitten his tongue on many occasion when the names of his wife and children got dragged through the dirt in front of millions. 

In that moment, I believe Will thought, it doesn’t matter what I do in my career, I’ll always be that scared little boy that didn’t stop his Mother from getting beat. And he said, no more. 

As a side note, it’s important to understand what triggers are when it comes to mental health, and what you’re husband may know will be damaging to you, even though it seemed an innocent off the cuff comment. I’m sure Chris Rock was unaware, and Will could have handled in a more calm and well matured manner than resorting to violence, especially as it’s completely overshadowed what was a richly deserved and overdue Oscar victory for what was a phenomenal performance. 

I congratulate Will on his Oscar win, and I really hope if he is struggling with his life and is overwhelmed by what’s being asked of him, or what he feels is being asked of him, that he seeks the help to recover and get back to being himself. It was difficult to watch someone I’ve admired for so long hit rock bottom on the same night he reached his highest point, but it was also a stark reminder that we expect superhuman actions out of people who are just as human as the people they entertain. 

Sorry it dragged on LOL

Edited March 29, 2022 by Big Willie

[VIsqo]

Wow I have not been here in so long. Good to see you guys. He should have never slapped Rock in front of everybody there. It ruined the evening. I felt bad for Questlove getting his Oscars right after that debacle

[VIsqo]

Now, if you guys read his book, a lot of things came to my mind from it. For example there was a part in which he says that for some part of his early days in LA he would slap people for any little thing while he was going out with Charlie Mack. He would get upset they would call him "soft" so he was getting in a lot of fights. 

Also brings to mind all his talk in the book about "the coward". I think after he saw Jada "hurted", he felt like he needed to prove to himself and everyone that he is not "the coward". He just did it the wrong way.

Edited March 29, 2022 by VIsqo

[VIsqo]

Comedians do this all the time. Back in the Day even more. They used to pick people with disabilities to make fun of. The joke was not even too hard. We cannot start assaulting comedians for making a joke. Will probably knows that as he is an avid follower of comedy and he is actually promoting now some stage comedians on a stand up special. He lost his mind for a moment and will regret it for a while.

Edited March 29, 2022 by VIsqo

[fan 4ever]

https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/academy-shares-letter-updating-memebrs-will-smith-oscars-slapping-incident-formal-review?utm_campaign=complexmag&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR2XEMz6XILgDpP_Ox2xArkTfqIQwHv301LElocIjxDc3f5Oy3D8sOgvffo
 

According to this the Academy’s review will take a couple of weeks.

[JumpinJack AJ]

For the most part, I don't really care what people's opinions are, so I haven't posted the ones that I've come across, but the one is more relevant than most.

https://ew.com/tv/fresh-prince-actress-janet-hubert-defends-will-smith-oscar-slap/

'Fresh Prince' actress Janet Hubert defends Will Smith's Oscar jab: 'Sometimes you have to slap back'

 

After Sunday night's incident between Chris Rock and the King Richard star, Smith's longtime colleague came to his defense.

By Andrea TowersMarch 28, 2022 at 12:20 PM EDT

 

Family looks out for family... even when it's the "slap heard around the world." Following Will Smith and Chris Rock's onstage incident during Sunday night's Oscar telecast, the Philly-born actor's own Aunt Viv — the original Aunt Viv, mind you — stepped in to defend him.

Janet Hubert, who played the role of matriarch Vivian Banks on the original Fresh Prince of Bel Air series for three seasons, hasn't been shy over the years about her feelings towards Smith and her co-stars, the two recently reconciled in an HBO Max Reunion special. But it seems like mending that rift went a long way, as Hubert was unapologetically on the side of her on-screen son.

"So PROUD OF YOU!" Hubert wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of Smith giving his acceptance speech. "Yes, there is only so much one can take...sometimes you have to slap back. Celebrate the win...nothing else matters. Both actions were incorrect but Chris didn't need to go there." Hubert also went on to throw some of her own shade at Rock, finishing the post by saying, "Met him once.... it was enough for me.... very mean spirited." 

 

The tense moment between Smith and Rock occurred more than halfway through the 94th annual Academy Awards when Rock, who had stepped onstage to present the award for best documentary, made an off-the-cuff joke about Smith's wife Jada Pinkett Smith referencing her shaved head. Smith then stormed the stage, slapped Rock, and sat back down before yelling at him, "keep my wife's name out of your f---ing mouth." 

 

Will Smith and Janet Hubert

 

| CREDIT: ANGELA WEISS/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES; ROB KIM/GETTY IMAGES

Less than an hour later, the actor accepted his first Best Actor award for the role as Venus and Serena Williams' father in King Richard. Smith attempted to apologize for his actions during his acceptance speech, saying "love will make you do crazy things," adding, "I hope the Academy invites me back."

As most of social media remains shocked at the incident, Hubert isn't the only one defending the actor. Tiffany Haddish called the moment "the most beautiful thing she's ever seen" and noted that "as a woman, who has been unprotected, that meant the world to me."

As of now, Rock has decided not to press charges with the Los Angeles Police Department over the altercation.