Four months ago, in what some have nicknamed “the slap heard around the world” Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars for making jokes about his wife’s baldness. On Friday, he posted an emotional video to apologize to Chris Rock once again, causing him to trend online and for people to reflect on the aftermath of the Oscars slap.
He starts off the video by saying he took some time to do some “thinking and personal work” before coming on screen to address questions people have had but he hasn’t answered as he wanted to take time. In the five-minute video, he answers numerous questions from why he didn’t apologize to Rock in his acceptance speech, as he won an Oscar that night, to the fact his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, had not asked him to do anything when she rolled her eyes at the joke Rock made.
Watching Will Smith’s video apologising for THAT situation and I’ma be so honest with you, he’s a better person than me because Chris Rock wouldn’t get one apology. Til this day, has Chris apologised for the nasty “jokes” he made regarding Jada that night AND before?
— MANNY | #TCMSHOW ????️ (@THEECLASSICMAN) July 29, 2022
He apologizes to Chris Rock, who he notes is not ready to speak with him at this time, but also apologizes to Rock’s mother and family, noting how his behavior was “unacceptable” and he wasn’t thinking. “I spent the last three months replaying and understanding the nuances and the complexities of what happened at that moment… There is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment.”
Of course, this sparked a lot of conversation online. When audiences at home and at the Oscars saw the slap, mixed responses came out. Many comedians spoke out about the slap, noting how a precedent of slapping comedians for bad or harmful jokes cannot be set. Others thought the slap, while inappropriate, was blown out of proportion, with Will Smith just defending his wife, especially since she had shaved her head due to her ongoing struggle with the hair loss condition Alopecia.
Chris says he’s not ready to talk, so Will forces the conversation down his throat publicly.
This is narcissistic behavior. Any public apology is not for Chris, it’s for the public
— {…eddie} (@imakesoftware) July 29, 2022
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Other people were glad to see Smith address the fact his wife did not tell him to do anything, as many people had blamed her for the incident. Now, with many of Smith’s movies on hold and a 10-year ban from the Oscars, some are wondering how the slap will continue to affect and impact his career.
