Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars
Actor Will Smith, after assaulting comedian Chris Rock at the Academy Awards, has apologized to the family of Venus and Serena Williams, as well as to the Academy.
“Life imitates art and I became a crazy dad like my character,” the actor said, when speaking after receiving a Best Actor Oscar for his performance in “King Richard,” a film about Richard Williams’ impact on the careers of the daughters of Venus and Serena Williams.
“I hope the Academy will call me again,” Will Smith admitted, minutes after reacting violently to a joke Chris Rock wrote about his wife slapping the comedian.
Chris Rock, who was going to present an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, compared Smith’s wife, actress Jada Pinkett Smith, who has no hair due to an autoimmune disease, to the cause that angered the actor.
Smith got up, went up to the podium and slapped Chris Rock, back to the spot, where he shouted, “Keep my wife’s name out of your ‘fucking mouth’.”
Immediately after the attack, Rock tried to downplay what had happened. “Will Smith gave me a good idea,” he joked, then said that this moment would go down in “TV history.”
Among the audience and the press at the ceremony, there was still doubt in the air about whether Smith’s aggression was part of a comedy segment with Chris Rock, but the actor quickly dispelled all questions during his speech, after receiving the award for Best Actor.
During the speech, Will Smith, crying, apologized to the academy and the candidates, and tried to justify the incident, avoiding talking directly about the assault.
“Richard Williams was a brave champion of his family,” he said, referring to the father of the Williams sisters, a role he played in “King Richard” and won an Academy Award.
The actor added, “At this point in my life, I’m dominated by what God wants me to do in the world. Sometimes you have to put up with insults, and you have to keep smiling and saying it’s okay.”
Will Smith also revealed the words of support he received from actor Denzel Washington, shortly after the aggression: “In the highest moment, when the devil tempts us.”
The television broadcast of the Oscars, which was going through a delay, was interrupted for a few minutes, followed by a publicity break, but it could be seen on some platforms and soon pictures of the attack on the rocker went viral on social media. networks.
In the photos, you can see Denzel Washington and Tyler Perry trying to calm Will Smith, right after he slapped actor Chris Rock.
Smith concluded, “Life imitates art and I have become a mad father like myself. I wish the Academy would call me again.”
After the actor’s speech, host Amy Schumer resumed hosting the show, blaming, in a joke, that the delay in resuming casting was due to the time it took to change her dress. He asked the audience, “Did I miss something?”
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