On Friday, the Academy handed down their punishment for Will Smith. He will be banned from attending the Oscars or any Academy-related events for ten years. This means he will not be able to attend the Oscars, nor the Governors Awards or the Academy dinners or anything like that, even if he is nominated again in the future. Meanwhile, Chris Rock still hasn’t said much of anything about the slap. Days after the Oscars, Rock’s latest standup tour began, and over the weekend, he performed in Indio, CA. Previously, Rock said he was “still processing” what happened. Now he’s telling his audiences that he will only talk about it when he gets paid:
California-based paper Desert Sun quotes the comedian as saying at the show in Fantasy Springs: “I’m OK, I have a whole show and I’m not talking about [the Will Smith incident] until I get paid. Life is good. I got my hearing back,” he then joked.
According to the outlet, attendees were forbidden from bringing mobile phones into the building during Rock’s set, and were given locking pouches for all mobile devices.
The actor had previously mentioned the shocking Oscars incident during a stand-up set last week, telling an audience that he was “still processing” what had happened.
TMZ believes that Rock is perhaps leaving open the possibility of suing Will Smith for the slap. I mean… it could happen, but I doubt it will. I think Rock was saying that he’ll talk about it when he gets a good offer for an interview. I suspect both Rock and Smith will have their choice with interviewers, but my gut says that Will is going to wait several months before he speaks. On the other hand, I think Rock will probably talk first. We’ll see.
Photos courtesy of Instar, Avalon Red and Getty.
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- Tyler Perry, and Oscar® nominees Will Smith and Denzel Washington during the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673515395, 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
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- Presenters Elliot Page, J.K. Simmons and Chris Rock backstage at the Oscar® for Original Screenplay to Kenneth Branagh 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: 673582693, 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
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- 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
I’m starting to really really dislike him.
He needs to apologize to Jada.
My thoughts exactly!
After getting slapped he should apologise? I think they are even.
After being slapped and Will slapped him like a mum slaps a child. Personally i would never apologise.
Yes, he should apologize to the Black woman he insulted on national television.
That’s really messed up to say @Mai B! He’s lucky WS didn’t do worse… He’s been raggin’ on Jada for decades! And just like @C said, it was on a National Platform, He definitely needs to apologize!
Not just insulted, made fun of a medical condition.
He should apologize to the black woman he has been targeting with insults since the 1990’s absolutely. The history there is really creepy
#apologizetoJada #sehyuhsorrychris!
I’ve always disliked him, I wasn’t really bothered by WS slapping him. For some reason he reminds me of Thomas Markle (I know Rock was a popular comedian once a long time ago but something always rubbed me off wrong about him).
Apologize for what?
You are all so lame! He is a COMEDIAN. Jada is a tool and is way less important than she thinks she is. She humiliated will on a regular basis. How is the woke mob anti Chris Rock?!?! No one ERM ‘em knew what alopecia was two weeks ago! Get over yourselves!
I agree with you 200%. Chris is a comedian and his joke was in good taste. I just read where she had alopecia.
As a stylist I personally think her dealings with her hair have caused the fallout. Perming, coloring etc.
The fact that will laughed make his actions all the more deplorable. I personally think he should be glad chris kept his cool. Any other man would have stomped him silly.
I personally think chris should sue him to the moon and back, nobody has the right to put their hands on anyone.
If Chris lets this go and will hurts another person it will be on his conscience.
The devil got hold of him? No I think he was already overtaken and he took it out on chris.
Will should have comforted his wife and spoken to chris later, that is what a MAN would’ve done.
Jada will be bald forever and the next man may not let will get off. If she was so worried about her hair why not put a wig on or a scarf, she will not be immune to jokes, bottom line.
Millions of people have alopecia and thats life. Even if chris had known so what!!!!!! I didn’t know until I heard the reason will acted out on tv.
All I can say is it is dangerous to put ones hand to a plough that is out of control. The color of ones skin should not keep them from being held accountable for vile acts.
Chris told a joke. That is his job. If comedians had to apologize for the jokes they tell, there would be no comedians. Chris has maybe mentioned Jada three times over a number of years. A lot more comedians have mentioned her a lot more. Where is the demand for their apology?
You don’t get to his someone because you don’t like something they say.
@indywom – totally agree!
You’re missing the point. Picking fun at someone repeatedly is not being a comedian and it didn’t form the basis of his other jokes at this show. Personally I have never found comedians who “punch down” funny but that isn’t the point either. Smith has apologized for his part, and Rock should too.
I t o t a l l y agree
Don’t particularily care for neither of them but am clearly liking Chris Rock a little more now!!
Sounds about white
Exactly! But Chris has been known to be yte ppl’s comedian since I was a kid. We’ve been warned about his disrespect towards us since that far back! Not surprised he has his fellow yte comedians slinging the N/hard R word around and laughing along with them!
Yo, Angie is allowed to have her opinion without being belittled. Be mad at the situation, not at your fellow commenters.
Jada= Beautiful bald woman
G.I Jane (Demi Moore)= Beautiful bald woman
I don’t see the insult here. And Will was laughing until he saw Jada was annoyed. Sorry but that did NOT justify being physically ASSAULTED like that. Good for Chris for not responding , as he had WAY better material to really offend them with ALL the info , TMI, on their red table talk show.
You are deliberately ignoring the dogwhistle in what he said. Not only did he make fun of her medical condition, there is a distinct social trope that Black women are less “feminine” than other races; he was using this trope to call her “butch”.
Their talk show has nothing to do with this.
I think you are assuming he knew that she has Alopecia and much less a disability when half the population suffers from this as we age. Again, I don’t see why Will had to go hit him publicly, not the place that we is now at risk of being cancelled 🤦🏽♀️
He knew. And As Celebitchy has covered, Rock has been targeting her for decades and Will has asked him to stop before.
That was unnecessary. I am black. What are you going to insult me with?
3 jokes about someone over 20 years is not a target. Regina Hall told a joke about Jada and Will. How does she get a pass?
You need to educate yourself about the dynamics in society about Black women.
Regina’s joke was cringey but not an attack using a trope invented by institutionalized racism.
Angie, white too and I dislike him even more now so maybe let’s hope things will be evened out.
Of course you do.
@ C, agree 💯. People are so dismissive about black women.
Maybe there won’t be a lawsuit but that doesn’t mean there won’t be some kind of legal settlement behind the scenes. Money changes hands and he stops talking about it.
I don’t think he’ll sue will but might seek a settlement with the academy. After the kanye/Taylor mic grab award shows should have gotten careful about security on stage. No one, celebrity or not, should be able to just walk up there while someone is talking.
I genuinely think that will had been brewing and Chris just caught the brunt of it. Will did that same overly loud nervous laugh at Laverne a few weeks earlier.
It’s completely unacceptable that Will wasn’t stopped by security. Security absolutely would have been notified if there were plans for a skit involving someone from the audience hopping on stage. Chris has a strong case against the Academy and I’m sure they are currently reevaluating/rewriting their security protocols.
I liked both of these men before this sad incident. Although I understand Will’s anger and am not writing him off, I skew to team Rock here. Also want to say that Jada looked gorgeous during the Oscars and in general with her shaved head.
@Lili l think the Academy is partly to blame. They could have cut to commercials when they saw Will charging towards Chris.
They let it drag out an shrivel up in awkward silence instead of taking the initiative to at least cut to a commercial for both their sake, but the show must go on.
He’s talking about a Netflix special and not giving away all his material for the jokes about it.
I think Will might do an interview with Oprah in a few weeks. I dont see anyone offering big bucks to Chris, whats he gonna say he was hurt,mad!? we can all gather what the interview will be like. Where as Will Smith who has always been friendly and charismatic is the real scoop, people really want to understand what went through his mind,and why he snapped after holding it together for so long.
I don’t imagine he’s holding out for an interview opportunity as much as he’s trying to create a bidding war among the streamers for the stand-up special that will include material about the incident.
For the love of god, what is there to even say? We all saw it, we’ve all read all manner of think pieces. Can everyone involved just go away now, please?
Glad Rock is doubling down on attacking Black women during his set. Sigh. He’s exhausting. And honestly I don’t want to see any interviews from him on it anyway. He would be doing the same thing comedians have been doing since it happened. Scream free speech and act how dare people be upset about this thing I said. Ugh. Just remembering all the mess with Dave Chappelle’s show and am definitely bowing out of that mayhem.
Have you ever watched any Black comedian’s act? They make fun of all Black people. And they get a lot of laughs. They make fun of white people too.
Honestly, YES I know this was live, but like, it was a slap?? I was slapped by my own mother my whole childhood for the dumbest things and no ONE said anything when it happened in public (until 2010 maybe). I just don’t get all the outrage about this. Yes slapping someone is BAD and he shouldn’t have done it. But the punishment is ridiculous and Chris Rock’s reaction proves he doesn’t care at all about the joke he did. He just wants to milk this and make money out of it.
Slapping someone is a way to convey disrespect and deliberate, intentional insult. It communicates disregard very clearly. So your mother causally slapping you throughout your childhood is significantly worse than one grown man slapping another grown man under the circumstances that were present between Will and Chris.
Oh yeah I know my mom’s slapping was bad lol. She honestly had it way worse with her own father during her childhood. But anyway our relationship isn’t the best for different reasons now
Good for Chris.
Given that he said this during a standup routine, I think it’s possible that he was joking…
Chris Rock was not delivering a standup routine. He was not hosting. He was presenting and felt compelled to humiliate a balding black woman on the night she was there with her Oscar nominated husband….for a few offhand giggles
No, she’s saying he made the “until I get paid” comment during a standup routine.
These shows use comedians because they are known for thinking fast on their feet and being about to ad lib to fill in dead air when need. Radio DJs do the same thing. When a show is being televised, the producers sometimes need the comedian to keep the show moving. They tell the comedian to tell a joke so the dead time is not obvious to viewers. The comedian looks in the audience spots a person and tells a joke. Then gets slapped for doing their job. Very few people can do that. It was a joke. Not worth getting slapped over. Jada and Will should be more offended over the jokes people tell about their marriage which they put out there.
I think Leigh meant that he made the comment about getting paid during a stand up routine
Imagine if they worked it out together. Apologized amongst themselves and then talked together and showed the world ab healing, forgiveness, moving forward especially at a time of war, discrimination and political unrest?
Wow
After Rock apologizes for 30 years of jokes about Jada?
He has not made jokes about her for 30 years. He has mentioned her a few times.
To be fair, this is the internet, where changing a light bulb in 1992 counts as ’30 years of experience in the field of Applied Electronics.’
The internet wants to talk in absolutes, but Rock does have non-verbal learning disorder and seemed totally taken off guard by what Will did. I got the sense when he was making the GI Jane comment that he genuinely didn’t think it was offensive (he even said cmon, that was a tame one!), which is why he was kinda taken aback and confused by the Smiths’ unhappy reaction.
That’s not to dismiss the fact that he picked on a Black woman’s hair in a white-dominated space and has a history of calling out Black people in that way, nor does it excuse the hurt he could’ve caused Jada due to her condition. But the reason this situation is so complicated and difficult to talk about is that MANY things are true at once and no one was totally right or totally wrong here.
This site has covered how this is not the first time Rock has targeted Jada and that Will has asked him before to stop.
I think it was the contrast that made it more terrible. If Chris Rock had been roasting everyone, that would have been one thing. But he wasn’t. And usually, it’s customary to make digs at the NOMINEES. NOT THEIR GUESTS. He was flattering to Penelope Cruz (a nominee), Javier Bardem’s wife, but then when it got to the Smiths, Jada (A GUEST) got a roast dig about having a shaved head that not only mocked her appearance when she has a terrible autoimmune disease, but also made it sound like she’d star in a straight to DVD sequel (he’s mocked her acting career and activism before). You might not hear it that way, but if I heard it that way, others would as well – a Black woman getting mediocre sloppy sequel seconds for a movie a white woman already had success at. Yes, keep reminding her how much less successful she is than her husband. At the Oscars. In front of her friends, peers, and the world. Those words probably hurt her more than that slap ever hurt him.
In fact, that slap was great for him. He gets all this pity and sympathy press. He’s making money off it. People are dying of curiosity to see if he says anything about it at his shows. Meanwhile, Will is being punished horribly for a few seconds of being poked too far and losing his sh*t, and Jada gets to handle the fallout. Yet again, a bully gets away with it and doesn’t have to take accountability for their behavior. Note how Chris could have immediately said “I had no idea Jada had an autoimmune disease. I thought I was making a harmless joke and instead, I mocked a horrible experience she is going through. I am truly sorry.” But that would have justified Will’s reaction, so Chris isn’t saying a word and is milking his victim status while watching Will burn (and probably enjoying it). If Chris was a “friend” of the Smiths before this, he sure isn’t one now..
Will slapped a person on live TV. That is against the law. He is lucky he was not arrested. Chris told a joke. Not against the law. Who is in the wrong here? Chris Rock mocks everyone. You didn’t say anything about the joke Regina Hall told.
I really think his unnecessary and unfunny joke was an intentional attempt to make Will livid. I don’t think he thought Will would slap on international television at the Oscars but he was expecting some sort of reaction.
Chris Rock hasn’t been funny in over a decade and him getting slapped won’t make him any funnier. Don’t care about his version of events.
Seriously, you think Chris had the time and inclination to try to make Will mad. Please, you get up on stage. You do your bit. Producers tell you to fill in some dead air and you look in the audience spot a person and tell a joke. That is why they brought Chris Rock out to be able to keep the show moving.
As time goes by, I find myself in greater sympathy with WS. I don’t like feeling that way about an instigator, but I’ve learned more about CR’s jokes about black women, especially Jada.
Maybe because Will only appeared to be the instigator, when, in fact, he was reacting. He had a poor reaction and his timing maybe wasn’t great, but he didn’t just snap and start swinging on people. His (re)action was in response to something.
i dont understand why he wont talk about it till he gets paid? he is riding the wave right now with his shows being sol out, so who else is going to pay him, Joe rogan, Oprah? is he going to go for a sympathetic host gayle king?
I doubt Gayle King would be sympathetic to a man roasting a woman over her appearance on national TV…
This is about his next standup special with material about the slap in it. So HBO, Amazon, Hulu, Paramount+, Netflix, etc. etc. are who he is looking to get paid by.
It was a slap: it was hardly a beat down the way some people have reacted. (Jud Apotow saying he could have been killed is ridiculous.) Smith shouldn’t have doneit, but Rock is responsible for his own actions and his mouth. If JPS had been bald as a style choice the joke might have been funny, but the alopecia takes all the humor out of it for me. Then there’s the idiots that are calling out JPS because she’s drawing attention to herself instead of wearing a wig. Give me a break.
Will Smith is in trouble because people saw it and the Academy twiddled their thumbs. If I had any respect for them as an organization it’s gone for their ten year banishment of Smith as they are trying to make up for doing nothing by his punishment. Smith needs to get in line behind all the other men and I am sure some women for far worse crimes, convicted or not: Polanski, Woody Allen, Casey Affleck, Jared Leto, Emile Hirsch and the latest jerk Ezra Miller t name just a few.
You’re right. It was a slap, it was not a beat down or a punch or something that resulted in broken bones. I personally think a slap can be startling and incredibly painful, so not so lightly dismissed, but yeah, Chris Rock did not wind up in the Emergency Room needing stitches.
Conversely though, he said he was “looking forward to GI Jane 2” to Jada. It wasn’t funny. It wasn’t kind. But he didn’t jump off the stage, spit in her face and call her an ugly bald b!tc#.
Both sides are very passionate about their position, which might lead to heated emotions and possibly a little bit of perspective being lost as we are all expressing our opinions about what happened.
The slap was wrong on so many levels. But so was Chris Rock’s joke. He needs to apologize to Jada. Mocking someone for a health issue they have no control over is reprehensible.
I’m sorry but…what lol? You’re a COMEDIAN, dude. This should be comedy gold material. You could be getting paid NOW running around taking the wind out of Smith’s sails. This is the stuff of PR dreams.
If he sues him, I don’t say this lightly but…what a joke. Like, would you be able to take this dude seriously after that? He just proved he really can’t roll with the punches when it comes to absurdity of life. Talk about an industry where they all take themselves far too seriously.
Right now, he’s currently doing a bunch of dates with Kevin Hart, so why use the juicy material at shows where you have to split the gate. The last three solo dates of his tour in November are at the Dolby Theater, the site of the slap. Plenty of time to get a streamer to cut a big check for the broadcast rights, polish the material and do it at those three shows only.
It takes time to craft a special worthy of the tens of millions that a comedian of his calibre commands. He doesn’t steal jokes like some clearly do, either.
I would actually like to see Will Smith interviewed by Oprah, like one of the commentators above suggested. I think he’s a very complicated man and I’d love to hear his take on things.
Chris rock had a tough childhood, being smaller teased on and beat up by his black classmates than went to a white school bullied on and beat up for being black and small, some sexual abuse too. He used humor to cover up his pain, like a lot of comedians do.
Which is why he spent 30 years having a go at a woman who rejected his advances? That is some incel shit! Also: Will Smith’s father would beat his mother until she coughed up blood in full view of their small children. He has spoken about this publically. Unless Rock is very dumb, he was aware that him having a go at his wife, the mother of his children, could be triggering for Smith.
did anyone else view this as more of a punch than a slap? also, how interesting that Chris Rock, whom I’ve followed for years, did a documentary on good hair. I admire both WS and CR but think they both are at fault here.
How is three jokes since the 90s the same thing as dogging her for decades?!!! THREE JOKES. One every ten years? What is the matter with you delicate wimps!
Thank you. The gaslighting is so strong. It’s no coincidence the people I talk/joke about the most are people in my social circle and famous people.
The “gaslighting” 💀
Why is Chris still popular? He is hardly funny.
Over Will too…
It’s time for some new faces/talent..
Hollywood has become boring, same old folks getting attention for years.
And before anyone turns this into a race issue, I’m over all the same old white men too.
Over Leo, over Brad, vin diesel…ugh how many times must I see his face.
Fast and furious 15
WHO CARES!
Don’t even get me started on all the older male action stars.
I don’t wana see 50+ year old action men, give me a hot stud. I want to escape reality!
If we get aged out…they should too!
I think what might make this a tricky situation for the Academy is that it’s actually an incident of *workplace* violence. They are probably coming down so hard to try to reduce their current and future liability. Rock was a paid employee and was represented by a union for his engagement at the Oscars. I wonder, actually, if there will be any settlement between the Academy and Rock to prevent him from taking action against his employer for their inaction and lack of security. I suspect that behind the scenes, there are a lot of people more worried about the business and legal side of things than they are about the actual individuals involved and the “right” or “wrong” of it all.