It’s an event that did not go unnoticed: the slap in the face that Will Smith delivered to Chris Rock during this year’s Oscars ceremony shook the networks. We tell you more about the reasons that may have led to this gesture.
A joke that did not pass
It will not have escaped you, during this Oscars 2022 ceremony, Will Smith did the show. If he apologized in tears for his gesture to Chris Rock, the Academy as well as all the viewers when receiving his prize, it was the slap he gave Chris Rock a little earlier that unleashed passions. Scripted or not, deserved or not, everyone has their own explanations. The scene could actually find its genesis as early as 2016.
This March 28, 2022, comedian Chris Rock hosted the Oscars ceremony. On this occasion, Jada Pinkett Smith’s hair didn’t make a joke, actress, singer and wife of Will Smith, both present. The latter took this joke particularly badly: he crossed the stage to slap the comedian without warning. It is recalled that the actress suffers from alopeciaan autoimmune disease that attacks the hair follicles, causing more or less severe hair loss.
A first “attack” at the 2016 Oscars ceremony
This isn’t the first time Chris Rock has poked fun at the actress. In effect, during the 2016 Oscars ceremony, the comedian mocked the absence of Jada Pinkett Smith. Indeed, the interested party had joined the boycott of the Oscars, protesting against the lack of black nominees, in particular via the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. Chris Rock then mocked:
Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties, except I wasn’t invited.
This first episode therefore created the dispute between Will Smith and Chris Rock, which resulted in the slap. Although relatively close to the actress, with whom he has collaborated many times on the animated film saga Madagascar, Chris Rock reportedly told relatives he was unaware of his condition at the time of the March 28 slap of this year. Officially, he prefers to remain silent on the subject, the time to digest the events.
Will Smith posted an Instagram post the next day publicly apologizing, and specifically to Chris Rock. In this post, he explains:
Jokes at my expense are part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s condition was too much for me and I reacted on the spot with emotion.
It is not known if the protagonists were able to have a peaceful exchange on the subject. For its part, the Academy reserves the right to sanctions: it has already initiated disciplinary proceedings against Will Smith.
