By the time the Oscar after-parties rolled around, Will Smith and Jada and their kids were party-hopping. The whole Smith family posed together at the Vanity Fair Oscar party. There were some social media videos of Will dancing and singing, but they seem to have been mysteriously cleaned up. Still, the photos of the family out together as a unit… I feel like Will and Jada sent that message on purpose.
People obviously still have their opinions about The Smack or The Slap or whatever we’re calling it. I’m calling it a smack, because it just feels like the more accurate word for some reason. Will Smith open-hand smacked Chris Rock on stage at the Oscars. While everyone and everything was extremely unsettled during the Oscars, it seems like the temperature got turned down after the show. Chris Rock declined to press charges. The elder statesmen of Black Hollywood – Denzel Washington, Tyler Perry… and Bradley Cooper – were all working hard in the room to de-escalate the situation and resolve the conflict. The first presenter after the smack was Sean Combs, who aimed for positivity by saying “We’re going to solve that like family. But right now, we’re moving on with love.” Puffy had more to say after the Oscars, claiming “That’s not a problem. That’s over. I can confirm that. It’s all love. They’re brothers.”
Now, I believed that people were talking to Rock behind-the-scenes, but after Puffy’s comments percolated for much of Monday, TMZ dropped this story. This story has an unnamed friend-of-Chris-Rock says that, actually, Chris and Will still haven’t spoken and Chris went straight from the Oscar stage to his dressing room, then he went to Guy Oseary’s party much later. The same friend also said that Rock had no idea that Jada has alopecia and that Rock “doesn’t have a mean bone in his body.” Somebody call Denzel on the Bat-phone, I guess? As of this moment, Rock has not issued any public statements or apologies – the “apology” going around social media is a joke, Rock didn’t write that.
Then about 22 hours after The Smack, Will went on social media and issued an apology to Rock, to the Academy, to the Williams family and everybody else. He seems genuinely embarrassed and this apology is – to me – more than adequate. (He doesn’t have the comments turned on, which is also fine with me).
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
-
- Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith during the live ABC telecast of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673515557, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
-
- Oscar® nominee Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith arrives on the red carpet of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at the Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673541241, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
-
- Will Smith attends the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones celebrating the 94th annual Academy Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 27, 2022 in Beverly Hills, California,Image: 673579164, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Will Smith, Credit line: – / JPI Studios / Avalon
-
- Will Smith attends the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones celebrating the 94th annual Academy Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 27, 2022 in Beverly Hills, California,Image: 673579181, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Will Smith, Credit line: – / JPI Studios / Avalon
-
- Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith, Will Smith, Jaden Smith and Trey Smith attends the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones celebrating the 94th annual Academy Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 27, 2022 in Beverly Hills, California,Image: 673579577, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith, Will Smith, Jaden Smith and Tr, Credit line: – / JPI Studios / Avalon
-
- Chris Rock backstage at the live ABC telecast of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673582761, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
Is it possible Chris Rock didn’t know Jada had alopecia?
I think it’s possible. I had no idea and I’m a pop culture junkie. She has rocked that short hairstyle for years, I just assumed it was her style.
Same Erica. I read everything but somehow missed knowing she had Alopecia.
Her amazing eyebrows are what threw me.
This is what I’ve been saying- I’m also a Pop Culture junkie, a loyal celebitchy, someone often granted backstage access to big pop culture happenings, AND I have alopecia, AND I DID NOT KNOW….
I didn’t know either. I’d read an interview with her where she said it was in bad condition and Willow encouraged and supported her to buzz, but I hadn’t heard of the alopecia diagnosis. I think its quite possible.
Its very possible he didnt, and i am saying this as someone who follows the Smiths and Red table talk on insta. I dont always click and i assumed she just wanted away with hairstyles for a while.
100% did not know either she had it and I read all sorts of celeb gossip. Normally I read the condensed versions like this site but I truly thought she had short hair because she looks good with short hair. Which she really does. When I heard the GI Jane joke my first thought was because she’s fit as well.
According to white twitter yesterday, it’s possible Will Smith murdered Betty White, after Betty was brought back to life and sent to the Oscar stage where Will Smith smacked her and she fell back, banged her head, and had a fatal brain bleed, so…in the way that anything is possible, but is it likely? Nah.
Trina- pretty sure White Twitter said he killed Bob Saget too. 🙄
The way Right Wing media latched on to this was enough to make me sick. I think Will and Chris both messed up but good Lord. I am appaled to think of the way this conversation would be different if it was say… Blake Shelton smacking Jeff Foxworthy for insulting Gwen Stefani.
Yes, I forgot she also pinned Saget on him. It would have been very different IMO because WW are used to seeing white men protect them, but they are not used to seeing a black man protect and defend a black woman. And they don’t like not being centered, so huge backlash is what we were and still are seeing.
Trina- lol, I posted below that I didn’t dive that deep enough into Twitter.
I thought your Betty White comment was a joke. And I was joking about Bob Saget.
I cannot believe both were what really happened. It shows just how out of control the convo has gotten that both these arguments seemed like comedy to me.
Rapunzel, I know I saw your comment and I cracked up.
@Trina; thank you for the article you posted below (I couldn’t reply to the comment specifically). It explains perfectly why WW specifically should stop and think about why they don’t need their experiences and feeling to be centered here.
@ Trina, I just read the article. I believe the author when she said what Chris Rock did was misogynoir. It is disheartening that Black women continue to be held to different standards, suffer greater attacks within and outside of their community, and to be marginalized when they try to stand up for themselves and their views.
But I 100% disagree with the author when she called what Will did a “little slap” and tried to minimize it in every way possible. Smith himself apologized and condemned his own actions. We were all forced to watch the physical assault, live. What happened to Jada and what happened to Chris became two separate incidences. There is no justification for minimizing or excusing the latter, even if the former is also wrong and despicable.
Lux that’s fine, some people say they feel violence is never the answer. I feel that everyone knows that sometimes it is the answer, but everyone’s idea of when it’s the answer differs. I feel that it was a slap, and there’s been a lot of pearl-clutching over it. I also wish Will had handled his business backstage, but I wish that for his sake, no one else’s. Rock is someone whose comedy is actually bullying. A lot of male comedians share this trait. I think we should talk a lot more about that than we do. And none of this insult comedy should be considered appropriate at the Oscars. They need to stop that now. I don’t find it appropriate anywhere. If you can’t be funny without mocking women, the disabled, LGBTQ, etc, you are not a comedian. You’re a bully. Let’s change that culture. Then something will have be accomplished.
No it’s not. And even if he didn’t know he was making fun of a black woman’s appearance in front of a predominantly white audience.
So?
What are we, holy relics? *
Black women can be made fun of.
White women can be made fun of.
And so on and so on…
(*Yes, I am A WOC. And yes, this is my opinion alone)
Yes because what this world is missing is more mockery of women. It simply does not happen often enough. And if it’s a black woman with a disability? Extra points.
Was he making fun of her though? It seemed like more of a compliment than a joke. Demi Moore as GI Jane was gorgeous, Jada looks like a goddess, as GI Jane, she would be a total bad ass. I guess to see it as an insult you’d first have to think that her bald head makes her ugly, but it doesn’t, at least not to me. Now that I have learned more about her and her husband, maybe she isn’t so beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. I had no idea she had sex with her son’s friend.
Odd that Chris Rock literally produced an entire documentary re Alopecia as it relates to Black Women/White beauty standards. I find it odd he “didn’t know” or would have the gall to mock her hairstyle.
I said this yesterday but I’m morbidly obese and some of it is medical. I’ve been made fun of publicly, in crowds, pointed and laughed at, in groups, family and friends. Comedians make fun of fat people every single day. If I hit someone every time I’d spend my entire life in jail. Jada has a medical condition. It’s not fun (I have male pattern baldness and I’m a woman so I know). It’s just not the point if he knew or not. It really isn’t. Violence is violence.
And another day where WW center themselves and pretend they don’t get that words do violence to black women daily.
Will all due respect Trina, censoring every person you don’t agree with isn’t the solution nor is it even remotely realistic.
WS had every right to defend his wife, it is the manner that he chose to do so that is wrong, and it is wrong no matter what color all the protagonists are and no matter what color all the spectators are.
If you show me were I censored anyone you get a cookie.
your various remarks about how WW should not be allowed to enter this dialogue because they cannot possibly understand.
I say this as a WOC suffering from androgenic alopecia myself. When Will Smith decided to hit another man, he made it about himself and toxic masculinity, he gave a cookie to every racist watching this and gloating about black on black violence. There are better avenues and better ways to defend black women. This isn’t a white women issue, this is a Will Smith issue.
I have NOT said WW should not be allowed to “enter the conversation”. What I have done is criticized the method many use to do so. Centering themselves. Here is a thoughtful article I hope people who want to do better read. https://www.teenvogue.com/story/will-smith-chris-rock-slap-situation-is-not-about-you
@Sybill. Will Smith isn’t responsible for the opinions of racists. After four years of Trump, respectability politics is never going to be a thing again.
@Kalana – i dont live in the states , where i am from this is how it will be/is seen
@Sybil, thank you for that comment. The incident took place on stage in front of millions and it’s captured on film and all over the internet for all to see. Yes, EVERYONE has an opinion and they will vice it. I for one, am here to read all those comments and get a different perspective. And Sybil’s statement about racists gloating about the violence from a Black man and Will’s actions feeding into it has been stated and said by many in the past 24 hours. There are always better venues and avenues to confront and deal with a situation and not use violence. Unfortunately for Will, he snapped. And I truly believe that. Something deep in hi psyche made him snap and forget his pubic persona.
@Sybill. It doesn’t matter. Racists are responsible for their own opinions.
Don’t try putting that on Will Smith. That in itself is racist.
I am not the one putting this on Will Smith, but it won’t stop others from, because they already are.
We live in a world where if you are a minority, you are seen as the defacto ambassador for your people, something that i am acutely aware of as a muslim WOC. i agree it is racist and it is something that we should combat so we are finally seen as individuals.
This is why i am opposed to this generalization , about how this fight was really about all black women being disrespected or how all white women with opinions are just centering themselves. This should be brought back down to what it is , which is about two very rich men behaving badly
@ Sybil, thank you for saying this.
@Trina, no one needs to ‘do better’ if ‘doing better’ means finding excuses for violence.
There are none. Against anyone.
Hey, please listen when Trina is talking. Don’t rush to argue with her, but listen and try to understand.
It is not appropriate for a white woman ( — or a WOC who is not Black) to center yourselves in a discussion about Black women because that’s, once again, misogynoir. Maybe completely unintentionally, and I am not trying to offend or hurt anyone by saying this, but just, please please listen and take a pause and listen with an open heart. This is not trying to “censor” people. It is about staying on topic, focus, distinctions, and showing respect for our Black sisters and what they in particular have experienced that is different than what a white woman or non-Black WOC has. Don’t jump in and take over and sideline or marginalize or demean Black women’s voices.
Patricia Hill Collins writes about how Black women have a perspective of “the outsider within” in U.S. society that is helpful if you are looking for more context on this.
Can’t it be both? Can’t Chris’ joke be insensitive, and sexist *and* Will’s response be an inexcusable resort to violence, clearly prompted by internal suffering?
I totally get that the villification of Will as an abuser, an out of control brute, and various other racist stereotypes of black men, stinks. I think implications that Jada, as a black woman, doesn’t deserve someone standing up for her, or the excusing of Rock’s joke, that had misogynoir overtones, together reeks of the social harm to and neglect of black women. All of these responses are problematic and wrong.
That doesn’t mean what Will did was “very minor” (quote from the teen Vogue article). An escalation to violence isn’t ok, and in general I don’t think it should be how we “protect” women (seems too much like a Bridgeton era duel for my liking). In saying that, I don’t mean that Rock’s joke, or all of the problematic and/or racist responses aren’t problematic and/or racist. We can make everyone responsible for the part they play, right?
@Sybil That’s your choice but you still don’t get to put that on Will Smith.
And you’re opposed to generalizations but think Will Smith should think in terms of being part of a generalization? It seems like the generalization you oppose is one that pushes back on your opinion.
I don’t understand your comment. As i said i dont put that on Will, i stated that others will.
Question that arose online yesterday that I saw:
Would Will have been allowed to stay in the audience if he had slapped Ricky Gervais, a white comedian, for the same joke? What if it had been Amy Schumer who told it?
Conversely, what if Chris Rock had made the joke about Kirsten Dunst weight after having a baby (I think she was the best look of the night)? Or a joke about Kristen Stewart being engaged to a woman?
Trina – Thanks for posting Teen Vogue article link 🤔. Adrien Brody not only force-kissed Halle Berry onstage at Oscars, he never expressed apology or regret for it. He did, however, defend Roman Polanski saying some mumbo-jumbo about his complicated life.
Sacheen Littlefeather was almost dragged off stage by John Wayne when she delivered Brando’s non-accept speech, and was then blackballed by Academy to production companies, talk shows, etc.
Academy should be formally reviewing its own lack of security rather than Will Smith.
Someone asked yesterday in that monster thread if it made a difference if he knew, and I think it does. It changes the tenor of the joke. It still doesn’t make the joke okay, there was really no need to even mention Jada, let alone her hair, but I do think it changes the tenor a bit. It goes from mocking a medical condition to “just” being inappropriate and an ass.
Do I think Rock knew? I honestly have no idea.
Rock did an excellent documentary about black hair ages ago. I think if he knew he wouldn’t have made the joke.
I feel like the joke was bad enough on is own – don’t make fun of people’s appearance. But if he did know, that makes it even worse.
@Sarator 100% what you said. I also found the minimization of what WS did (“minor slap,” “small slap”) completely unacceptable in the article. You can make your points (which are 100% valid) without explaining away or excusing assault.
I am a non-black WOC and I did not like that the article made it seem like WW didn’t think Jada was worthy of being defended. Can we as woman honestly think there is anyone who is unworthy of protection? If Will Smith had walked out, used his words, or issued a statement one day later, no one would’ve have a problem with him defending his wife. No, what Will did was not the most horrible crime in the world, but it was wrong, period.
Will Jada receive an apology? She’s the only victim here and her feelings don’t seem to come in to consideration at all. She’s the one who had to sit there and face humiliation in front of millions of viewers. And either people say she should have just sat there and laughed it off or somehow she’s to blame for Will getting up on stage. Somehow this 5 foot nothing tiny woman was supposed to hold this 6 foot something giant back from getting up on stage and smacking the taste out of Chris rocks mouth.
Exactly.
Jada wasn’t a victim. She was the subject of a joke. Although she shares everything on her Red Table Talk, that doesn’t mean that everyone is aware of what she discusses. Not everyone watches it. This was a tempest in a teapot that Will Smith started when he laid hands on another human over a joke.
That’s what I want to know. Where is Jada’s apology?
Sharon Stone seems to be the only celebrity who was concerned for the actual victim (Jada) and was the only one who asked did Chris (I’m ok with letting Louise C.K. and Garvis repeatedly saying N*gg** with the hard R in my presence while I laugh) Rock apologized to Jada?
No, she is not the ONLY victim. Chris Rock has to spend the rest of his life reliving his assault, watching it turn into memes and become the butt of jokes. They are both victims.
I don’t put the onus on her to stop WS but she later nodded to his shambling mess of an Oscar speech about love making you do crazy things. No. That moment should not have happened and Will Smith should’ve left the theater when Chris Rock did.
I didn’t know she had alopecia, i thought that was her style, that it was about modern fierceless women. The joke to me was so harmless
Yeah, I do think the fact that Chris didn’t know she had alopecia does make a big difference, AND the fact that he said “GI Jane” instead of something like “playing a cancer patient” or “doing a Holocaust movie”–which would have been appalling. (I felt gross even typing that, but I do think one of those references would have been infinitely worse and would have deserved a smack. Saying GI Jane wasn’t bad.)
I’m old enough to remember that Demi Moore worked the hell out of shaving her head for the role. I doubt Rock knew she had alopecia because the joke isn’t funny if the haircut is the result of a medical condition.
The weird thing is that “GI Jane 2” is not a bad idea, having it feature a largely POC cast is a great idea, and badass Jada would slay as the lead. (Wouldn’t it be ironic if…?)
I think Will’s apology is spot on, and I’m really glad he issued it.
I agree with you guys. I remember Demi Moore working the hell out of that role, I watched it in theaters and people hollered and clapped when she shaved her head. I didn’t know Jada has alopecia, I thought she just favored a more bad-ass look. When I heard the joke, it didn’t seem insulting. I guess because Jada is so gorgeous, it was hard to imagine that her look was anything but intentional. But I guess now we know that it’s not. I thought Will Smith was a good guy before this. Now he just looks like a violent man with money. It did occur to me that maybe the reason Jada cheats on him so much is because perhaps he is abusive.
Sure, if you’re a busy celebrity doing your own thing and not following other people’s social media, it’s possible you don’t know the details of their lives.
Gayle King said yesterday she didn’t think Chris knew she had alopecia.
Which means it was meant as a straight GI Jane joke. Weird in 2022, I know.
It was still a tasteless unnecessary joke. Which is Chris Rock’s M.O. The man is tasteless and can only punch down with his unfunny “humor.”
On how you look at it – I look at it as a possible misunderstanding and a definite assault. Since we don’t know what he meant by the joke, it’s hard to guess the context. He could have just been comparing her to the badass feminist in GI Jane and thought he was being complimentary. Who knows?
And everyone wants to skip over the actual physical assault. Reading the majority of the comments it looks like this is an acceptable reaction to almost anything. Pro tip – it’s not.
I had no idea, or didn’t remember, and I read gossip pretty religiously.
I do think it would be nice for Chris to apologize to Jada and make a donation the the alopecia foundation.
I know two black women who have chosen to close shave their heads for hair freedom. Willow Smith has the same cut. JPS is not currently bald, you can see hair growth all over, her head is shaved. So, yeah, if you don’t know her story, you could absolutely think it is a style choice. JPS has always spoken about how strong and independent she is, etc. She doesn’t need him to fight her fight. She has the power and a public forum to speak for herself. If he needed to respond, he also has power and a huge forum to do so. WS chose violence and now looks even worse than he did before.
I love gossip, I feel like I always know the tea and I had no idea she had alopecia. Demi was hot AF in GI Jane and we all can acknowledge that haha. The joke was 100% shit if he knew and mehhhh if he didn’t. Violence is not the answer to anything.
Laughing at the joke, posting videos before the show saying they were going to cause chaos Oscar night and saying numerous times she doesn’t care what people think of her hair does not help. Blaming it violence on love is just sick.
Also – there ARE rehearsals for the Oscars. There’s a whole other debate going on re: did will know about the joke before and did he approve it.
The whole thing makes everyone look stupid. Unsure why everyone was comforting Will when he ASSAULTED someone.
A lot of people had no knowledge of Jada Pinkett alopecia. If you don’t follow her on social media or watch her show, you wouldn’t know stuff like that about her.
Maybe, but Chris Rock didn’t write those jokes. The jokes are written by a writers room. Look at the credits of the Oscars. Likely a white Hollywood writer did. But of course, Hollywood is allowing Rock to take the blame…
Its been reported numerous times that that Joke was ablibed by Rock.
Yes it was incredibly dumb and im sure Will regrets it and somehow is glad he got whatever demons off his chest. I hope they dont take back the Oscar back,i think Will Smith has enough good will to not affect his career moving forward.
They’ll take Will’s Oscar back when they take Roman Polanski’s Oscar back. You know, the man who raped an underage girl and fled the country. But I guess Smacking someone is worse than rape.
Yeah, If we start taking back Oscars for bad behaviours, we can start with Polanski, Weinstein, Allen and all the Hollywood peeps that got their peers on McCarthy’s list before going for Will. What he did was dumb, toxic and selfish but there’s been worse
He was made to do that. Didn’t look too embarrassed/ashamed while dancing at VF. He was basking and gloating. Never mind Jayden’s post.
Will was in his own little bubble Sunday night (like all celebrities). He woke up Monday morning and no doubt felt like an ass and I’m sure that had a lot to do with it. Maybe in his own way, he expected everyone to justify it but realized that majority were not so he needed to act. Quite a coincidence the apology came out after it was reported the Academy was going to investigate how to handle this.
Totally. His publicist had him apologize once he realized his Oscar was at risk. It doesn’t matter at this point what happens, no one is talking about how he won an Oscar, the only big news is about the slap.
Agreed. I don’t find this sincere, I see it as damage control. I am surprised by how many people can watch such a violent act and say “oh he apologized via text post on social media, we good”.
I would be interested to see if/when Rock has something to say about the situation before I go praising Smith. That is without even mentioning his unbearable son’s tweet.
What did Jaden say?
Jaden said ‘thats how we do it’ ,he was happy his father won..and ?
How do you know Jaden’s tweet wasn’t just about Will winning; there is nothing I saw besides “that’s how we do it”? Why is Jaden responsible for what someone else did? How do you judge someone else’s sincerity in apologizing? Did Chris apologize publicly to Jada? His comment was certainly public.
Here’s my issue…what about a Chris Rock family. How about his daughters feeling some way about there comedian Dad being assaulted live on international tv over a joke. Will Smith in my humble opinion has deeper issues that he needs to address. He’s wearing a mask of happiness but internally weeping. He allowed a sickly friend of his son enter his household for help and that help led to an affair in his household. So the culmination of that Tupac and the red table talk, has build up and burst on Chris Rock live for the world to see. that’s y therapy is real…
How is Jaden “unbearable”?
Definitely damage control. His whirlwind of emotions Sunday night are what really concern me. You can’t turn off the rage and sadness then be all jubilant, then back to ragingly sad, then gleeful without it taking a mental toll.
Also, people pulled up the video of him slapping that troll (who tried to kiss him), and in it he says he got a call from Jay-Z. He thought J was going to ream him out, but instead J thought it was hilarious and Will realized that the world appreciated the authenticity. Maybe he thought the reaction would be the same this time. But his response to Rock’s joke was not “in the moment.” It would not qualify as self defense or defense of others. That’s one reason why reactions to what he did are so mixed. His insecurity about Jada’s love and proving his worth to her really do make him crazy. But that’s on him. And he needs to work on himself. (I’m basing my assessment of his obsession with “winning” Jada since 1997 on all the stuff he himself has said. Out loud.)
Exactly. Not convincing when there’s photos of him hamming it up Sunday night
This whole episode was so sad and ugly and I had nothing worthwhile to add to the discussion yesterday . It’s a relief to wake up to this statement.
Does anyone feel like Will Smith has been in a bad place emotionally and in his personal life for a long time? His actions were that of someone who isn’t emotionally stable or in a contented place.
I do. He has seemed…off for a while, imho. Spiraling. And, yes, I do think it has a lot to do with personal insecurities and demons and oversharing that manifest negatively in his relationship/entanglement/marriage with Jada. I don’t think they are a good match given his head space when they got together (again, my opinion), but rather obsessive about each other (and others) in different ways. I think he needs a serious mental health intervention, though, as I understand it, he has been in therapy. There’s much more to unpack and work to be done to come out a changed, healthy individual. He is not healthy right now.
Yeah, his actions were so uncharacteristic for him. I think that’s why the crowd was silent for a few seconds and he wasn’t throw out. When you’re under stress for a long time and trying to hold it together the smallest thing can make you snap. I wonder how much of that was about the joke and how much was about the last few years. Regardless, what he did was wrong. I hope he gets help. And there should be some consequences because Chris Rock did not deserve that.
Yes. I saw someone yesterday say words don’t hurt unless you’re already hurting.
@TeamAwesome, very profound and powerful. So true.
Of course he is in a bad place. He jeapordized a decades long career with an emotional outburst that lead to a physical assault.
Will Smith has crafted a nice guy image that has suffered a bit lately. We don’t really know if it’s just an image or if he truly is a nice guy, but it does seem like he has been going through some stuff lately. Doing what he did on the biggest night of his career was very self destructive.
Yes.
Yes.
I have read/discussed so many opinions on so many different angles and issues with this mess that one fact remains clear: this onion has many layers and it sticks all the way through.
And I can’t believe my Samuel L Jackson received an award and I was oblivious to it for much of the day due to this drama.
Edit: that should be “stinks” and not sticks.
Where’s Chris’ apology?
Doesn’t look like it’s coming.
He doesn’t need to make one. A joke is never a prompt for violence, even if the joke is considered in very poor taste, which I disagree with. GI Jane was a boss and Jada has been rocking this look for awhile. If it was some big reveal for her, then yeah Rock should apologize. But it wasn’t and she is just terrible in general.
Chris disowned his third daughter after his divorce because he didn’t want to pay child support. You want to talk about terrible? He also cheated on his ex-wife and joked about how he understood why OJ murdered Nicole.
You are not the gatekeeper of whether Jada deserves an apology whatever your opinion is of a movie.
So if you made a comment, whether intentional or not, that hurt somebody else you wouldn’t apologize? I think a decent person would.
Agreed Chris doesn’t need to apologize. He’s a comedian at an awards show. Roasting people is what they do.
Chris is going to stay quiet and hide behind his friends. He needs to apologize. He was there to present an award and that’s it. Instead he took a shot at Jada for no reason.
The third “daughter” was not their actual daughter, I’m not even sure if she was formally adopted.
Yes, she was but Chris tried to cast doubt on the adoption process by his exwife. That child was raised in that house for seven years, from before her first birthday, as their third child.
@Kalana why are you making this about Chris Rock cheating on his wife, did he cheat with Jada Pinkett or with Will Smith? Because I don’t see the relevance to anything that happened on Sunday night. You wanna talk about cheating? Let’s discuss the Will Smith and Jada Pinkett marriage that has been in the media for years now.
I was responding to Jamie calling Jada a terrible person. Jamie seemed to think that was relevant.
If will was truly sorry he would not have been living it up at the parties after he show. The pics are being deleted because it shows that he was not sorry or worried at all. The publicist put that out there because a day after the smack people rightfully criticize him and rip him a new one on social media….it was unacceptable what he did and his apology is really lame considering that he did not even call Cris or talked to him after that incident.
Yeah, those clips are bad. People cheering for him. His DJ friend playing all his songs, while he and his family dance to them. Pictures and videos of other celebrities from the award show hugging him. That’s normal for celebrating an award, but not after slapping someone who was doing their job.
I think that if Chris Rock had known about her medical condition, he would not have made the joke. He’s never really been a “mean” comedian and has gotten even more family friendly and harmless as he’s aged. If I were a comedian, I’d just steer clear of any and all jokes about someone’s physical appearance. It’s low hanging fruit, anyway.
Nah, Chris Rock is beloved because he uses black people as his punchline. His making fun of Jada’s appearance was mean.
100% INCORRECT
Chris has a history of mocking and degrading black women. He’s done it repeatedly to Jada, as well as michelle obama, Oprah, Rihanna. That’s what he’s known for. That and giving white men an ” n word pass” (his words).
He knows who he can target.
Chris is crap and what he said about Jada in 2016 sucked. And also other black women. So you can keep Chris. Until he goes after you that is.
This is not true. There’s a reason why a lot of black people went, yeah that was a long time coming. Chris Rock is known for talking crap about black women in his standup. And after the 2016 Oscars he has repeatedly went after Jada in his standup material which a lot of people pointed out. There’s animosity there and I 100 percent do not believe Chris Rock did not know. And even if he did not, he attacked a black women for having a bald head and as a black man, he knew how that would make her feel. Like she wasn’t a real woman, like she wasn’t sexy, etc.
I really need WW to stop saying that her having a bald head and looking like GI Jane was a compliment. If you looked at her face when he said that joke she didn’t take it as such. I am tired of people acting like Chris Rock was some innocent victim when he decided to add a joke that wasn’t part of the script to go after Jada.
I think this is what some people weren’t getting in that thread yesterday. Part of the difference in reactions along racial lines was because Chris Rock is a rich a**hole who has been making Black people the fools in his routine for a while. Internalized oppression, a disconnect because of his massive wealth, a combination of those, I don’t know. Very few people out there think that what Will Smith did is okay. But for those (of all races) who are frustrated with “humor” like Rock’s, who made a joke about a Black woman’s appearance in front of a mostly white audience… I feel like we just wanted to have a more nuanced discussion about this. It’s unfortunate some people just don’t get it.
Also, Judd Apatow is out there saying some WILD things about this that are so problematic. I can’t wait for the post on it. It’s like a Sociology lesson – you can go line by line almost and point out all of the issues.
Agreed Green Desert. At this point though Will Smith is probably going to have to get charged and get his Oscar taken back. And I say that because that is the wind is blowing. Hollywood actors/actresses are not happy about it and tons of them wanted him to face punishment Sunday night.
Will Smith should not have put hands on Chris Rock full stop. Chris Rock should not have decided to once again make fun of Jada because apparently she doesn’t have feelings that matter to him.
@with love &
@amy bee
I agree he’s been mean plenty of times
Didn’t he hire a private eye to harass a woman he cheated on his then wife with so he wouldn’t go to the press with their affair?
Then once divorced said he cheated because he thought he was entitled to it and praised his new girlfriend because ‘she has her own money’ unlike his ex. So not a mean bone in his body is an exaggeration
And if we are going on past behavior, let’s not forget the Scientology school the Smiths helped fund. And that Scientology TEACHES you to use open palm slaps against other Scientologists to let them know they wronged them. Hmmm.
Or the whole alleged grooming of Jada’s sons friend.
None of them are perfect victims, but the reality is nobody is a perfect victim.
Let’s just say “Recollection may vary”….. and move on
The whole thing became ridiculous. Smacking someone is wrong, the joke was wrong, and it’s awful the whole night got overshadowed, but people were acting like Will committed murder or something.
The academy is apparently investigating whether to strip him of his award. If they do, it would be absurd, considering fugitive sex offender Roman Polanski still has his. The fact the academy is even considering it is… well, it sounds about white.
The Academy should have just put out a statement condemning Will Smith and not included the bit about investigating the incident or whatever. The very idea that people are speculating on Will Smith losing his Oscar is absurd IMO.
Agree! I’m of the ‘Chris shouldn’t have made the joke, Will shouldn’t have hit him over it’ mindset, but there’s a long list of truly gross (and criminal) white people, mostly men, who have gotten Oscars with nothing from the Academy about stripping theirs. That statement is beyond disgusting considering they haven’t stripped Roman Polanski of his, or Mel Gibson, etc.
What irritates me is they are making a statement about Will but nothing about Chris being inappropriate. They need to examine their rules for something concerning jokes that go too far and if there are none, come up with some.
I am standing firm that Chris didnt know about her condition either. I inhale pop culture and had no idea…just thought that was her style
I had zero idea she has a medical condition, but I follow countless short hair Instagrams and buzzed hair is absolutely on trend and fierce as hell, so I assumed she’s another lady rocking the trend.
I don’t inhale pop culture and knew about her condition. If it’s a way to potentially talk trash about a black woman then you can bet Chris Rock knew.
That’s how I feel about it too – both made mistakes, Will’s reaction was shocking and wrong, and it’s really sad it’s overshadowed so many other wonderful achievements, but pursuing it further seems unnecessary. Stripping him of his Oscar is ridiculous, while people like Kevin Spacey and Roman Polanski get to keep theirs.
Looooool the comments yesterday was a shit show! One thing is for certain white woman are gonna white women. I’m sorry but sometimes violence is the only way. The violence we as BW experience on a daily basis is not met with enough violence. Men only respond to being checked by other men. Can you imagine how our lives would be like if the men in our life stepped up.
Some came back today determined to do even worse. WW gotta make it all about themselves.
@Mia and @Edwin Watson, big claps 👏🏿👏🏿 for y’all’s posts. I seen demands for Chris Rock to apologize to Jada Pinkett, apologize for what? Why is the Will Smith family the only family everyone seems to be focused on? How about Chris Rock and his family? Chile, miss me with all the hypocrisy.
And Will Smith being the d!ck he is managesd to make even this non-apology about himself. I’m a work in progress, dude are you for real? And “a joke about Jada medical condition”? Stop right there, you still making excuses and rationalizing your despicable violent behavior. There was no joke about Jada Pinkett medical condition, there was a GI Jane joke. What and how you chose to interpret it as and react according to yr interpretation is on you, not on Chris Rock.
I LOL 😆 🤣 at Will Smith whinging about his father’s physical violent abuse; and now he has turned into and will forever be likened to his father, the man he despise the most. Very ironic.
Sometimes violence is the only way? Are you serious? I cannot imagine going to a work event and having someone make a pretty lame joke and me reacting with violence and then ANYONE justifying it.
Honestly. Last night I was thinking that white women took this event, which had NOTHING to do with them, and turned it into lawd knows what. On Twitter, a doctor was all “What if it had been Betty White who made the joke and Will slapped her and she fell back and hit her head and DIED? What then???!?!?” Like…I just.
Yep that was Rep. Katie Porter’s sister who made that crazy post. Someone above just reminded me she also said same could have happened to Bob Saget. WTF? I also have seen so many WW “I’M TRIGGERED” posts. Everything has to be about them. Every single thing.
Wait, what? I thought Trina was joking about the Betty White thing when she mentioned it up above!! Someone actually said that? Wtf??
Edit: I was joking about Bob Saget. I cannot believe someone actually said that too. F–k, white people are nuts (WW here).
The outrage just depressed me so I didn’t dive hard enough into what was being specifically said. I’m glad I didn’t. It just angers me.
Alright I admit that’s kind of cracking me up bc its so ludicrous. “If it had been Betty White…..” like, wtf? Betty White is already dead. We don’t need to be imagining different ways for her to die.
What? What does white women have to do with the fact that a very privileged black man potting his hands on another very privileged black man. Everyone and their dog has an opinion on what happened and yes including white women.
No your life would not be better because the men in your life would either be in jail serving jail terms for assault, or dead because of the very violence your want perpetrated.
Yeah I don’t need any man slapping another man for me and I’m pretty sure Jada can take care of herself.
It didn’t help that someone Sean Hannity had a guest on to talk about how the slap was a way at coming at Donald Trump. I am done. And tired. So many white celebrities showed their whole butts yesterday. Demanding that LAPD charge Smith and in the same breath talking about how prisons need to be overhauled.
@A, no, violence is not the only way. And the problem with men “stepping up” using violence is that it will turn and be used on women and children as well. Let’s stop labeling violence as an answer. We, as a society, are making strides to be better. They may be small steps but taking leaps backwards is not the answer.
If sometimes “violence is the only way” then which types of physical violence are appropriate responses for each type of verbal insult?
Violence is the only way? SMFH
Sound like what an abuser says to his wife after e has beaten her ho. He had to teach her a lesson. She only listens after he has hit her.
I’ve been pondering this Joke and i wonder if it goes deeper than the similarites of the buzz cut hair style, because he could have come with the chant from black panther that the female warriors make, or he could have made reference to grace jones, there were other choices. i question whether is was not more about Demi moore and her relationship with Ashrton kutcher who was several years younger than her, in comparison to Jada and her relation ship whith her sons friend .
@Lili I didn’t even think of this analogy. Good Point
I assumed that the joke was because Jada was wearing green which is a color that can be associated with military. That and she is ripped!
Will/his PR team knew he had to do this. He clearly was in a bubble on Sunday night, possibly gloating (I can’t get the image of his strut coming off the stage after smacking Rock out of mind), but the only thing that interrupted the war in Ukraine all day yesterday was this incident. SM was ON FIRE about this all night and day. Memes are in overdrive. Then, the Academy starts an inquiry about consequences. He had to do damage control. That doesn’t mean his apology is insincere, but it sure as hell wasn’t timely. What I both love and hate about this is how the Black celebrity community is forced to handle this AND DOES HANDLE THIS the right way, but the white community never does.
I’m very glad his apology specifically reaches out to the Williams family and the King Richard “family.” The Williams sisters had to sit through a public diss from Jane Campion, smiling and bearing it, and then had to do the same on Sunday night. This should have been a thoroughly joyful and proud awards season for them, and it’s been dragged backwards through the shrubbery at least twice. They deserve all the best. That film was everything.
@C-Shell: I gave up because basically it became a group session about the sensibilities of WW. WOC really wanted Chris Rock and those like him to hear their voices, but it was difficult to be heard over WWs tears.
Paulah, and they have come back today to cry some more. I thought the apology was great. Now lets hear from Chris about his unscripted, unsolicited, unwarranted comment to Jada. Oh wait, I forgot she should just suck it up.
The apology is fine, would have been better without the use of the word “but”.
Seen at least 2 confirmations that Chis didn’t know that Jada has alopecia. In that case he owes her an apology and soon. I hope he does it.
Impact is always greater than intent, so we really don’t need to hear about how he is such a nice guy etc. You caused harm, make up for it.
Why is it Chris’s job to know about Jada’s alopecia??? Also it’s not that uncommon of a skin condition and it’s certainly not life threatening
I think I mentioned this in the other thread yesterday, but I don’t care if Chris didn’t know about her illness or not. He shouldn’t have made a joke about her appearance. I thought we all would have learned from what happened to Chadwick Boseman and the jokes that were made when he was fighting for his life, but apparently not.
Thank you. Comedians have stayed cheap and lazy despite the world moving forward without their brand of cruelty.
There’s no need to go smacking people for sure but it was only a matter of time before the wrong one picked the right one to target.
And Tiffany Haddish said some interesting things about how she’s heard GI Jane used to belittle women and while I don’t agree with her full statement, I got what she meant.
I agree. And I saw a lot of disgusting comments about Wesley Snipes the other day. Like we don’t learn at all.
That’s how I feel about the debate of whether he knew or not – the joke was still mean spirited and focused on someone’s appearance. That would be disrespectful to anyone.
I think it’s made worse that he targeted a Black woman about her hair – a woman he’s had a beef with in the past – and even more worse that she’s dealing with a medical issue.
It was very triggering watching Ketanji Brown Jackson suffer through the Supreme Court hearings last week and have to smile and grin and bear it while ignorant white men and women tried to demean her, question her competence. And now this situation with Will Smith is triggering on another level. White people pissed off cause Will Smith, a rich black man, won’t be punished to their satisfaction. Just like O.J.
I’m curious about Jada’s reaction after the slap. Shocked, pissed, sad, proud? Yes I know she owes us no explanation by any means, just wondering.
I was glad to hear that there was an apology to Chris. Unfortunately, Will Smith had to throw in a bunch of junk at the end. He was making an excuses again, and it renders the apology to basically meaningless. Listen, he HAD to apologize to Chris. There was no question. Will Smith and his PR team knew that much. The paragraph to Chris would have sufficed. The rest just backtracked all over the whole thing and was another back door excuse.
Really too bad for all of the people who should have been able to celebrate – Questlove, Williams women and and and.
Mostly sad to read how many people felt that the smack, slap, open hand punch was in any was justified culturally, legally, or for any reason. It’s a commentary on where we are now, and that’s not good.
Why do you presume that Questlove and any other award winner didn’t/couldn’t celebrate? Honestly, I wouldn’t have known who won what or cared about the Oscars this year had it not been for this unfortunate incident. I only know Questlove won because people keep saying his name as if he lost something – he didn’t. He won! To assume that other award winners were prevented from celebrating is silly.
People that are saying a slap is worse than the “joke” have clearly never been verbally abused. Why are people pretending that bullying cannot be done with words. People commit suicide from being bullied, sometimes with words as the only weapon being used. Words are important, hence why you can’t say the “n” word or other racial slurs. Im not saying violence is the answer but why does a comedian get a pass to say the most vile things only to say “it’s a joke geez lighten up”. It’s the same technique gaslighters and narcissist use to invalidate peoples feelings.
The only victim here is Jada as she was both used to get a laugh, humiliated in public and received no public apology from anyone.
Defend against words with words. Not violence.
Is it just me or does it seem like black women are the last acceptable demographic you can mock and degrade in public without anyone condemning it?
Remember Sarah huckabee and the eye liner joke by that one comedian? That one stands out to me because, first of all, it was so rare a joke be made at a white woman’s expense in such a personal way. Second…everyone shut that down.
Poor michelle obama had no one coming to her defense when she was mocked daily. Hell, not even her own husband.
Melania was made out to be a poor victim held hostage by trump and her blinking twice meant she was trying to communicate, through some kind of morse code, that she is against everything trump stands for, wants out, is a secret Democrat, perfect mother and held against her will in the trump tower.
I mean my goodness…animals get more people defending them.
No its not just you. And I’m sick of the “its just a joke” people acting like its ok.
Because we don’t deserve to be loved and cherished. It’s protect Black women until it’s an actual situation. The reason why so many Black women went hard for Prince Harry was because he protected his wife and moved her away from his toxic family and the press. And there were so many Black women who also said that she should have stayed and dealt with it, she knew what she signed up for. Black women are supposed to just take and take and not have any emotions about it. Black women are strong, we don’t cry, we can just absorb all the pain there is and keep it moving. Sigh.
I have several times in my life rocked buzz cuts ,grown it out long and then shaved it again. Short hair looks good on me! People do have all sort of opinions but honestly GI Jane was cool and I would consider it a compliment. I am a wife and mom of 3 and people really make weird jokes about my sexuality or whatever…which isn’t even really offensive, but dumb. And even I think people have sort of moved on from that. I realize that Jada has a condition. She is gorgeous! She has always worn her hair pretty short so I do think that Chris didn’t know about her condition. Like how many people really did who don’t follow her closely? It was kind of a whatever joke made at the wrong time wrong place. It’s good Will apologized. Hopefully they can all move on. I would imagine that Oscar campaigning is really stressful and he seemed to let it all get to him. 2 talented men who hopefully can move on from this. The whole thing is such a damn shame.
For the people who keep saying “Oh its a compliment, so in so looks hot with a buzz cut”, please miss me with that. Its one thing to ” rock a style” but it’s another when you’re hair is falling out. I remember the post Jada and her daughter did when she first shaved her hair and Jada talked about hiding under wigs for years and Willow saying how proud she was of her mom for taking that step. I’m losing my hair too, right at the top and its hard. So while you may think you are being complimentary, just stop, let it be.
But wasn’t GI Jane hot?? How could being compared to an iconic character played by Demi Moore in her prime be the straw that broke the camel’s back? Will Smith can tell the world that he hooked up with Stockard Channing, Regina Hall can mock their marriage and Jada’s amores, but somehow comparing his wife to one of the most bad-ass characters of the 90s is too far?
Because its not by choice that Jada has no hair. It has come about as a result of a condition and she has talked about the challenges she faced coming to terms with losing her hair.
All the others are choices, which Will and Jada shared with the world as regards the other partners they have had. Why is this so hard to understand?
No comedian is going to get on stage and make fun of Selma Blair or compliment her on her cane (she has Multiple Sclerosis) but somehow it’s ok to do it to Jada.
People are twisting themselves into pretzels over this looking for some way to absolve Chris, there’s none. It was cruel, unnecessary and in poor form and it doesn’t matter whether he knew or not about the alopecia.
Thank you for saying this. Way too many women on this thread don’t get it. Rock didn’t say it as a compliment! That’s what is getting me, he did not say this as a source of admiration for her. He decided to disparage her in a mostly white room to make people laugh at her. Can you imagine how that felt to her in that moment? This is after she did countless interviews talking about how she was ashamed about losing her hair and how it made her feel.
@Mrazi Please correct me if I am wrong, but hasn’t Jada said before that it was her choice to shave her head completely?
I’m still not seeing how that comment from Chris Rock just destroyed and humiliated her like some of you are claiming, especially when she has joked about it before in the past. As far as award shows go, this is pretty standard (Do you think the people that Ricky Gervais made fun of weren’t offended by comments made at their expense?)
Idk, it’s obvious to anyone with eyes that Jada is gorgeous and fit and I don’t think anyone thought he was comparing her to Voldemort or Uncle Fester when he said she was ready for GI Jane 2.
@Mrazi – I agree with everything you said and am sorry that’s it’s not a. obvious and b. still being debated.
@Grace24, Jada was losing clumps of hair and it got to a point she couldn’t hide it anymore. She’d worn turbans for a while and then resorted to just having short hair but those solutions weren’t working anymore which led to her cutting it all off. This information is on the internet and you can find out a lot more about what she said and didn’t say.
Your interpretation of the word “choice” may be what is hindering you from understanding the issue with that joke. Jada’s hair was falling off so she cut it all off. I had a friend who had breast cancer and was about to go in for chemo and radiotherapy. She cut off her beautiful long hair instead of waiting for the aftermath of the procedures. That was not a choice.
If jada wants to crack jokes about her condition she and only she can do so until she gives other people permission to do so.
Yes Jada is gorgeous but you don’t know what she feels inside except for what she’s told us.
@Mrazi , Thank you for taking the time to have a discussion with me about this. I understand completely that hair loss can be a traumatic experience for women to go through. I also hope that your friend is okay.
As far as what Jada has had to say, she posted several tik tok’s days leading up to the Oscars and in one said, “I feel the freedom today. I don’t give two craps what people think of this bald head of mine. Because guess what? I love it.”
Ultimately, I think if anything Chris Rock’s comments at the 2016 Oscars were way more insulting and out of line. Perhaps this is why Will took such offense? I just hate that for a night where so many great things happened (CODA winning, Sam Jackson getting his lifetime Oscar, Will FINALLY getting his much due respect with his Oscar — which I don’t think should be taken away and is ludicrous that that is even a talking point), that this is now what everyone is focused on.
I don’t agree with your take on this. Leaving Chris aside, all people have to play the hand life deals them. We can be crushed, or we can take back whatever limited control we can in a particular situation. As I see it, no, Jada did not have a choice about alopecia. Believe me, i personally know what its like to be struck down in your looks, it goes right to the heart and shatters your confidence. But i dont consider her positive action in cutting off the hair as a lack of choice. I consider it the way in which she demonstrated her strength, her dignity, her courage, and as an assertion of her integral beauty and femininity regardless of her hair status, and took back what control she could over a situation that was not her fault and not her choice. I DO see her as making a choice, and I honour her for it.
This reply is about the concept of choice, not tasteless and inappropriate jokes.
To me, Chris’s joke was kinda weak. I’ve been dissed harder by my friends. I doubt he knew she has alopecia. I like that Will stood up for her. I thought it was staged because to me, it wasn’t a really mean joke. It was the kind of joke a friend would make to another friend. But imo Will did the right thing by standing up for her. If I felt like a man dissed me, I would definitely want my husband to stand up for me. And it’s really disgusting how people are making such a big deal but I have a feeling the same people gave Kyle a pass. It’s disgusting to see how in 2022, people are still racist. Bet no one will be f$cling w Jada anytime soon. Go Will.
My very personal opinion is that Will went up and off on Chris because it made Will look good, ‘manly’, ‘tough’, etc. Not a guy emasculated by the public discussion of his wife’s young lover, but someone who “stands up for his wife” and won’t allow “disrespect”. No, this isn’t going to be bad for his image at all. It’s exactly what he wanted for his image. I think he wanted to turn the conversation around and he did.
(Just to clarify, *I* agree with none of this. I’m just stating what I think his line of thought was, and what a lot of public opinion seems to be.)
I heard the Rock will be hosting next year to deter a similar incident.
Hilarious! I think The Rock would be a great host and it would be such a clever transition.
I keep picturing the Rock every time someone refers to Chris as Rock, and it takes my brain a second to remember who we’re talking about here.
Has it ever been clarified whether Chris went off script or not? There were reports that the producers were claiming that he threw that “joke” in on his own. And yeah, he needs to apologize to Jada, this wasn’t his own stand up show, he was there to read the teleprompter and move on.
Variety reported that he add libbed that joke. So yeah the Academy isn’t going to let him use him as a cover.
Oh please, that was no apology. His publicist was up all night doing damage control while Smith and his entourage were dancing their asses off at the Vanity Fair afterparty. Smith should pay his publicist double overtime. He only issued that lame “apology” after the Academy announced they were launching an investigation. Hes not a bit sorry for his atrocious behavior. He’s afraid they will take his Oscar back.
Have they come for Harvey Weinstein’s yet? I thought we were supposed to “separate the artist from the art?”
Thank you, that was a lame apology. You don’t make excuse when apologizing. I’m thinking we saw the real Will Smith Sunday night. He assaulted someone and was having a great time at several after party, not taking any responsibility for his actions.
Also, Jada knows him, she should have told him not to cause a scene and take away from the other peoples night. I’m thinking she knew he was going to go up on stage and show out. This will be attached to his name as long as he lives, and not something to be proud of.
They could just not allow him to be nominated for any awards or attend the awards for a year or something?
Where is Chris Rock’s apology to Jada? Why is this whole thing all about the two men?
WS apologised and his words are appropiate taking all the blame, not justifying himself like he did in the speech at the ceremony. What else do you want him to do? Now, Chris rock should apologise to Jada IMO and we all can move on.
If we had to remove Oscars for bad behaviour the list will be the longest ever, so the idea is ridiculous.
I’ve said this elsewhere, but its not an excuse to acknowledge your weakness/blind spot in an apology. It wasn’t “I’m sorry but…” It was “I reacted badly and I’m sorry. The sequence matters. I’m not surprised he didn’t apologize to Chris Rock that night, he was still angry and there was no opportunity to reflect. His being out and dancing etc doesn’t mean anything. People do weird things under stress and when working. I was at a work retreat when my mother passed away. I stayed, participated in the rest of the event and the evening festivities because I couldn’t fix it and because I was afraid to show ‘weakness’. I over-compensated for my grief/pain/anxiety as hard as a one really can. But from the outside? One would have thought I didn’t care. Seriously, you can’t judge, or at least I can’t.
And frankly, as a someone who made a documentary about black women’s hair “for his daughters”? Chris Rock knew better than to make that joke when and where he did, regardless of whether he knew she was struggling with having alopecia. That has been a common point in the WoC communities.
Will apologized to everyone, including Chris. Its between them, let them work it out. Time to move on.
Will apologized only after the negative reaction. If the public reaction had been the same as his last slapping incident, there would be no apology.
Regardless, he apologized. And he’s not the first person to apologize after thinking things over. Its more than Chris Rock has done, but then he’s getting a lot of cover for this. As I said, time to move on.
He assualted someone in public. That’s not something sorry fixes
*sighs* Byzant, what more do you want? Him arrested? Chris Rock declined to prosecute. What would fix this for you and all the others to quit acting like you are the ones he slapped? Where is Jada’s sorry? Oh wait, by your logic it wouldn’t fix anything.
I’m glad he apologized and won’t second guess whether it’s genuine or not. I spent yesterday explaining to my grand nephew, who adores Will, why his reaction was not acceptable. I think a Chris Rock apology to Jada would close the circle. I’m thinking of some the really savage jokes by people like Ricky Gervais. Don’t think comedians will tone it down. That’s the nature of their business. I think in the future we will have jokes about this episode sadly.
“…and Bradley Cooper” 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Gold, as always, Kaiser.
Good apology. Chris should apologize as well. I hope Jada is okay. The Academy “investigating” is ridiculous.
I love a good stand up comedian, but as others have said Chris Rock has been trading on ugly jokes at Black people’s expense for a while. Especially Black women. In 2022, joking about people’s appearance should just not be a thing. It’s so low brow and unfunny. Lots of complaining about cancel culture from comedians instead of a hard look at themselves and the need to evolve their material.
If your jokes are about making fun of people’s appearance you are not a comedian you’re a bully. Chris Rock is a bully and everyone in the room that laughed at that joke was enabling a bully. Shame on them. I wonder if Will Smith would have slapped Chris Rock iif no one had laughed at his joke and there was just crickets instead of laughter. I feel so bad for Jada.
WS was laughing too. Until he saw JPS eye roll. So he was enabling him…
Diddy right, it’s over and everyone is gonna move on.
Will gonna be alright.
Rock is gonna be alright.
Everyone will be alright.
Academy needs to take note with their ‘investigation’.
Saying Jada shouldn’t be upset/doesn’t need an apology because she was compared to an attractive woman isn’t the flex some of you think it is.
It was a good apology. I don’t think it matters whether Chris Rock knew Jada had alopecia or not. He is a black man, he made a film about black hair, he is culturally aware in ways his mostly white audience would not be about black women, femininity, racism and beauty standards. He would know alopecia is a possibility, he would know that no black woman would appreciate such a joke. It was callous and cruel.
I’m glad he apologized, particularly for the sake of his fellow winners who were totally overlooked because of what happened. It was a historic night in so many ways and it will never be remembered as such because of this. To think this could be many attendees’ first and only award show and this is what happened is upsetting. It also makes me sad for the Williams family. If he were there bc he played a fictional character, fine, but he was there representing a living person and the entire family and failed them.
I hope Chris also apologizes to Jada, even if he wasn’t aware of her condition. Just because she’s spoken about it doesn’t mean he knew about it, but if he hurt her about her medical issue, he should be sensitive to that.
Anyone else see Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s essay on this? He really nailed it.
Kareem.substack.com
Thanks for pointing it out. I hadn’t seen it. Thoughtful and nuanced.
Love Kareem
Thank you for sharing that link. Best article I’ve read on the subject and Interestingly, Richard Williams the father of Venus and Serena Williams has spoken out saying that he condemns violence.
Thanks for sharing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar link, previously unknown to me. His thoughts seem well considered.
OMG what an eloquent essay. Thanx for sharing, love Kareem, I agree with everything he says. Absolutely nothing to add.
I thought it was “Respectable Negro” bullsh!t. So much “Will Smith embarrassed us in front of the white folks” but nothing about Chris Rock embarrassing Jada Pickett Smith in front of these same people. Jada is supposed to get over it because its a joke. Butt out Kareem.
What MsIsam said. That was some nonsense. And him diminishing Jada and acting like hey it’s a joke just get over it…nope. Dr. Gay had a better essay about this IMHO.
I agree that Roxane Gay’s article was a good one. Especially how she says that “the incident has become something of a Rorschach test onto which people project their backgrounds, opinions and affinities. And what gets lost in the discourse is that, however disappointing the incident was, it was also a rare moment when a Black woman was publicly defended.”
Margot thanks for the tip! I subscribed right away.
I’m more interested if there are any juicy details of what the Academy offered Rock to not press charges. Not to say he would have, but you know they were scrambling behind the scenes and he had to have been offered SOMETHING.
As for Will, they’re not going to take away his Oscar. Should he have been removed? Probably. I understand why he wasn’t, but either way it’s a lose/lose situation. I more feel bad for the Williams sisters and everything else who had a moment overshadowed because of this nonsense.
Why would the Academy care? They don’t do anything and they sure as heck don’t care about women and minorities.
@Kaiser, “The elder statesmen of Black Hollywood – Denzel Washington, Tyler Perry… and Bradley Cooper –” I can’t with you today lol lol lol.
It’s so odd how his wife admitted to cheating on him, and he had no reaction. But Chris Rock makes a joke about his wife’s hair and he loses it. Um. OK.
He’s admitted conflict over it. I’m confused why people are assuming he hasn’t had sone kind of internal conflict about it. Maybe it’s not a reaction we can see, but I think he has had some psychological reaction to it.
Actually in a recent interview, he said they have never cheated on each other. They have a sort of open relationship it seems. He said nothing was a “surprise” to him. They talk about everything with each other. I guess it works for them?
One thing that came out of all this is people are actually talking about it (violence) whether it comes in the form of words or physical, I think there is a lesson to be learned.
I would love a world without any kind of aggression but until we get there it’s important to bring the conversation to the table than act like it doesn’t exist and we’re living in a different reality than what’s actually going on. That would make it harder for the aggressor to change and the victim to get change.
If this had been thirty years ago, a lot of people would probably have chalked it up as something exciting or romantic. Because we’re learning and now we know better we’ll do better.
Chris Rock owes the Smiths an apology and I was ok with Will Smith not giving one until Rock delivered. However, I don’t know either of the parties personally so there isn’t anything for me to speak on.
Doubtful that Will’s Oscar will be taken away.
Where is Chris Rock’s apology to Jada? Chris Rock is a bully and shame on the academy for enabling him. But I wish that Will Smith had thrown a ddrink in his face at the after party instead of hitting him in the face on national tv… But i totally get the impulse. I don’t care how rich celebrities are, having your appearance mocked on national TV with your peers laughing. That is the stuff of nightmares.
Yeah I disagree that Chris rock doesn’t have a men’s bone in his body
*mean
Kareem has an interesting take. Might not be the one you like. He might be wrong but he’s also entitled to his own opinion. There was an article I read yesterday that was better. I think it was at The Root. After I read it, I stop commenting.
I hope Will is bracing himself for a slap in the face back by Chris with his humor, as I suspect some serious roasting in his upcoming stand up comedy show. I’m glad Will apologized because that kind of behavior shouldn’t be seen as acceptable.
I also wonder how many times Will has laughed when others have gotten roasted at these types of events.
I really appreciate all the thoughtful comments on this thread.
However I may be in the minority here but I see it as an issue of entitlement. Do you know what would happen if I slapped a work colleague at a function? If I were white/black/asian/male/female/ trans/other? I would be told in no uncertain terms’ you are fired’ unless I was physically defending myself or someone else from a physical assault.
While all the discussion this has generated has touched on really important things we often don’t think about- like how WOC are mistreated regularly for example – at the end of the day this was a work event where a person broke the law assaulting another person doing his job ( even if i take issue with how that job was being done). everyone in that room (mostly anyway) are exceptionally used to being above what constitutes most peoples work environments.
I feel as though actors probably see worse on set. Granted, this was public, but sets are work environments and sone of the stories that we hear years later don’t sound too good. And of course there’s the behaviour at meetings arranged by agents where highly inappropriate things can happen.
I don’t know if Hollywood really has an actual code of conduct they adhere to in relation to a workplace.