At Sunday night’s Oscar ceremony, Will Smith shocked the room by approaching the stage and slapping presenter Chris Rock in the face after the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife, actor Jada Pinkett Smith.
Rock was on the Oscar stage to present the award for best documentary. He began by making a few jokes about members of the show’s audience, including Pinkett Smith—referring to her as “G.I. Jane” due to her closely cropped hair. (Pinkett Smith has spoken in the past about her battle with alopecia.) Shortly after Rock
made the
joke, Smith walked to the stage and slapped the comedian across the face. He then returned to his seat and shouted, “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth.”
At first, watching the telecast, it was unclear whether the assault was a planned bit. But the show’s audio immediately cut out after Smith slapped Rock, then stayed muted as Rock said, “Will Smith just smacked the shit out of me,” while Smith walked away. When Smith yelled from his seat, Rock, still onstage, seemed stunned.
“Wow, dude,” replied Rock “It was a G.I. Jane joke.”
The moment was all the more surreal given the fact that Smith was nominated for his turn in Warner Bros.’ sports drama King Richard and would later return to the stage to claim the award for Best Actor, as predicted.
Later, when Smith returned to claim the prize for Best Actor, he chose to address the moment with Rock. “I want to apologize to The Academy; I want to apologize to all of my fellow nominees,” he said through tears. “I hope the Academy invites me back.” Smith, it should be noted, did not apologize on stage to Rock.
– With vanityfair.com input
