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The history of the 2022 Oscars could have been that of a tremendously inclusive, multiracial gala in which a deaf-mute actor won a statuette for the first time and in which Latinos achieved numerous successes, including the movie ‘Encanto’, However, this edition will remain in the memory as the one in which, to everyone’s surprise, Will Smith took the stage and slapped Chris Rock.
It was a moment of ‘shock’ for those who were present, for the spectators, for those who wondered on Twitter if the aggression had been real or a trick to get attention, and for Chris Rock himself who reacted in disbelief to what just happened to him:
“Will Smith just hit me with everything,” Rock said. His words and those that followed from Smith were censored in the broadcast in the United States, but in other countries, the full content was shown and those videos soon circulated on the internet.
The unjustifiable aggression of Will Smith
What was it that made Will Smith jump out of his seat? Apparently, the actor who won the Oscar that same night for starring in ‘King Richard’ did not take well the joke that Chris Rock made about her wife, Jada Pinkett, who he made fun of for having a shaved head. It turns out that Jada suffers from alopecia.
Rock, alluding to Jada’s look, commented that he was looking forward to seeing her in the sequel to ‘GI Jane’, a film in which Demi Moore shaved her hair to play the role of an aspiring Navy Seal.
In the broadcast images, it was seen how the actress reacted with discomfort to Chris Rock’s words before Will Smith’s violent outburst began.
It should be noted that since 2018, Jada has been wearing a short hair look because she suffers from an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss.
She herself has spoken openly about her condition on her talk show ‘Red Table Talk’ and for some reason, the comedian came up with a joke about it.
After the slap, Smith reaffirmed his attitude and addressed Rock, already from his place: “Keep my wife’s name out of your mouth.”
Later, when Will Smith took the stage again to collect his Oscar for Best Actor for ‘King Richard’. Through tears and nervously, he talked about how throughout his life he has always wanted to defend his family. Without mentioning the incident, Smith apologized to those present and to the Academy, although he did not apologize to Chris Rock for the assault.
The Academy reacted to the slap of Will Smith to Chris Rock
At the end of the gala, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences used its official Twitter account to distance itself from the incident between the actor and the comedian.
In a brief message, he expressed that he “does not condone any act of violence” and that “the winners deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and film lovers around the world.”
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