US actor Will Smith has apologized to comedian Chris Rock after he was slapped at the Oscars.
“I want to apologize to you publicly Chris,” the Hollywood star wrote on Instagram on Monday. “I misbehaved and I was wrong. I’m embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be.” The Oscar Academy has since announced an investigation into the incident.
Smith hit Rock onstage at the Oscars after the comedian insulted the actor’s wife with a joke.
Shortly after the incident, Smith was awarded the Oscar for best actor in the film King Richard, about the father of tennis players Venus and Serena Williams. In his acceptance speech, he tearfully apologized to the Oscar Academy and the other nominees – but not to Rock.
“Violence in all its forms is toxic and destructive,” Smith said on Instagram. “My behavior at the Oscars yesterday was unacceptable and inexcusable.” He continued, “Jokes at my expense are part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s health was too much for me and I reacted emotionally.”
Rock made fun of Jada Pinkett Smith’s hair loss at the gala. The comedian compared the 50-year-old, who made her illness public in 2018, to actress Demi Moore in the 1997 film The Jane File. Moore plays an elite soldier with a shaved head.
Rock said to Smith’s bald wife, “I’m looking forward to The Jane Files 2.” Smith laughed at first, but then stormed onto the stage and slapped Rock hard in the face. He also yelled at him, “Don’t put my wife’s name in your damn mouth.”
The incident overshadowed the presentation of the world’s most important film award and made headlines around the world. The organizers of the Oscar gala condemned the incident on Monday and launched an investigation. Further “steps and consequences” would be examined.
Smith’s conduct was also condemned by a number of film and comedy industry figures. “He could have killed him,” director Judd Apatow wrote in a later-deleted tweet. “This is pure uncontrolled anger and violence.” Director Rob Reiner called on Smith to apologize to Rock. Smith, who became a star in the 1990s with the series “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”, could be “glad” that the comedian who was attacked did not file a complaint.
Comedian and Emmy-winner Rosie O’Donnell called Smith’s behavior a “sad display of toxic masculinity by a narcissistic lunatic.” There have even been calls for Smith to be stripped of his Oscar for King Richard on online platforms.
Smith again apologized to the Oscar Academy in his statement on Instagram. “I also want to apologize to the Academy, the show’s producers, all contestants and all viewers around the world,” the actor wrote. “I would like to apologize to the Williams family and my King Richard family.” He “deeply regrets” that his behavior “tainted” the success of the entire film crew.
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