Will Smith projects faces threat amidst Oscars slap controversy

The backlash following the infamous slap Will Smith laid on Chris Rock at the Oscars continues. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix has pushed back one of Smith’s upcoming films.
Netflix is backing away from Fast and Loose, set to “tell the story of a crime boss who loses his memory after an attack,” The Hollywood Reporter said Sunday. The project lost its director shortly before the Oscars. Netflix had “put out an urgent call for another director to take over” but appears to have moved the project to
the back burner after the incident, the website reports.
Additionally, Smith had received 40 pages of the script for Bad Boys 4 prior to the Oscars, but work on the movie will now pause, the website reported, citing an unnamed source.
As of now, Smith’s next starring role is in the film Emancipation, where the actor portrays a runaway slave who journey through Louisiana swamps to escape plantation owners. That Antoine Fuqua-directed movie, currently in post-production, was scheduled to premiere on Apple TV+ in 2022, but no release date has been
set yet.
According to IMDB, Smith – in the role of producer – still has plenty of projects on the horizon in various states of development, but the fate of those films and TV shows is now in flux following the fallout of Smith’s infamous Oscars moment.
On Friday, Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in a statement where he accepted “all consequences for my conduct.”
“My actions at the 94th Academy Awards presentation were shocking, painful, and inexcusable,” Smith wrote. “The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and global audiences at home. I betrayed the trust of the Academy. I deprived
other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work.”
Smith continued, “I am heartbroken… Change takes time and I am committed to doing the work to ensure that I never again allow violence to overtake reason.”