Will Smith has issued a formal, public apology for slapping comedian and award presenter Chris Rock at the Oscars 2022 ceremony on March 27.
Rock and Smith‘s physical and verbal altercation occurred live on-air during Sunday night’s ceremony. Smith confronted Rock onstage at the Dolby Theatre and slapped him across the face after Rock made a joke about the baldness of Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who has been vocal about her struggles with the autoimmune disease alopecia.
“Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive. My behavior at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable,” wrote Smith in his statement, which he posted to his Instagram account. “Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally.”
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong,” Smith went on. “I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”
In a second slide, Smith’s statement continued, in which he apologized the Academy, the Oscars producers, the show’s attendees, and “everyone watching around the world.” The actor also apologized to the Williams family and his King Richard cast. “I deeply regret that my behavior has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us. I am a work in progress,” Smith said, ending his statement.
Following their altercation, Diddy, who was also a presenter at this year’s show, spoke to Rock and Smith directly before presenting a special anniversary tribute to The Godfather, claiming that the two men would work things out after the ceremony.
While at the Vanity Fair Oscars Afterparty, Diddy told Page Six that Rock and Smith did indeed end their feud. “That’s not a problem. That’s over. I can confirm that,” claimed Diddy. “It’s all love. They’re brothers.”
The “slap heard around the world” has sparked a wide range of reactions from the media, the public, and the two entertainers’ Hollywood peers. While many celebrities like comedian and filmmaker Judd Apatow perceived the incident negatively, gravely condemning Smith’s actions, comedian and actress Tiffany Haddish called the incident “the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“When I saw a Black man stand up for his wife. That meant so much to me,” Haddish told People after the show, noting that while “the world might not like how it went down,” she interpreted the moment as a husband’s display of protection for his wife.
Rapper Nicki Minaj also shared her support for Smith on social media, expressing her belief that Rock would not have joked about Pinkett Smith if he knew about her alopecia diagnosis, but could not understand how Pinkett Smith’s story had flown under his radar.
“Social media has made ppl feel that these ‘husbands’ won’t ever run into them in real life,” Minaj tweeted on Sunday night. “You just got to witness in real time what happens in a man’s soul when he looks over to the woman he loves and sees her holding back tears from a ‘little joke’ at her expense.”
Soon after the Oscars broadcast ended, Smith’s son Jaden tweeted, seemingly in support of his father: “And that’s how we do it.”
As reported by CNN, Will Smith was nearly removed from the ceremony after striking Rock. “Academy leadership strongly considered removing Will Smith from last night’s broadcast following the incident,” a source told CNN. “There were immediate discussions but the Academy decision-makers were seated in various spots in the Dolby Theatre and couldn’t mobilize to make a decision before he won Best Actor.”
The Los Angeles Police Department has confirmed to ‘Variety’ that Chris Rock “declined to file a police report” after the incident. The LAPD issued a full statement about the situation, released to multiple news outlets: “LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program. The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”
Though the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences tweeted a short statement the night of the ceremony, declaring that the organization “does not condone violence in any form,” the Academy issued a longer statement on March 28. As noted by ‘The Hollywood Reporter’, the statement reads: “The Academy condemns the actions of Mr. Smith at last night’s show. We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law.”
People reports that the Academy’s Standards of Conduct, which was shared alongside the full statement, describes unacceptable conduct as “physical contact that is uninvited and, in the situation, inappropriate and unwelcome.”
The “formal review” launched by the Academy will likely result in disciplinary action against Smith, such as suspension of his Academy membership or expulsion from the Academy entirely — the specifics are expected to be addressed at the Academy’s upcoming Board of Governors meeting. (THR reports that an “emergency phone call” of board officers has already taken place.)
However, Whoopi Goldberg, who is a member of the Board of Governors, said on Monday’s episode of ‘The View’ that it’s unlikely the Academy will rescind Smith’s Best Actor award. “We’re not going to take that Oscar from him,” Goldberg said. “There will be consequences I’m sure, but I don’t think that’s what they’ll do.”