A stunned audience and an inglorious image that will go down in the history of the most prestigious ceremony of the 7th art. American actor Will Smith caused amazement on Sunday, March 27, by delivering a big slap on stage to comedian Chris Rock, who had just made a joke about his wife during the Oscars ceremony. Franceinfo returns to this controversy, which overshadowed the rest of the evening.
What happened ?
The incident occurred in the heart of the 94th ceremony of the most prestigious awards in Hollywood. Known for his caustic humor, Chris Rock, one of the event’s presenters, had just cracked a joke about Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith. “Jada, I adore you, I can’t wait to see the rest ofOn equal terms !“, he launched, comparing the hair of the actress, cut close to the shaved head of Demi Moore in the film by Ridley Scott released in 1997.
Jada Pinkett-Smith, who recently spoke on social media about suffering from alopecia (partial or total hair loss), rolled her eyes. At first hilarious, Will Smith then went on stage and gave a powerful slap to Chris Rock, the sound of the blow resonating in the microphones in front of the stunned spectators.
The American network ABC cut the sound during the scene which followed, but the dialogue was audible on foreign televisions. “Wow. Wow. Will Smith just knocked my head off”dropped Chris Rock. “It was a joke about On equal terms!“he justified himself to the actor. “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth”shouted twice Will Smith, returned to the side of his wife.
What were the reactions?
Will Smith’s outburst stunned the audience. While a few bursts of laughter had first sounded in the public, some thinking of a staging between the two men, an awkward silence quickly settled. The gesture disconcerted the stars as the televiewers. A shocked photo of actress Nicole Kidman has gone viral on social media.
Nicole Kidman reacting to Will Smith punching Chris Rock is more Lucy than Being the Ricardos. pic.twitter.com/BdFomkE7BZ
— Melissa Murray (@ProfMMurray) March 28, 2022
Revealed in the series The Scott brothersactress Sophia Bush reacted to Will Smith’s gesture on Twitter in a message “liked” by more than 16,000 people. “Violence is not acceptable. Aggression is never the answer. Incidentally: This is the second time Chris has mocked Jada on the Oscars stage, and tonight he took on her alopecia”she wrote. “Making fun of someone’s autoimmune disease is wrong. Doing it intentionally is cruel. They both need to breathe a little.”
In a tweet, the Academy of Oscars said “tolerate no form of violence”.
The Academy does not condone violence of any form.
Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) March 28, 2022
How did the ceremony continue?
Ironically, minutes after this incident, Will Smith won the Oscar for Best Actor for The Williams Method, a film in which he plays the coaching father of tennis champions Serena and Venus Williams. He very quickly burst into tears at the microphone. “I know that when you do this job, you have to put up with the jokes (…), always put on a good face”he said, the statuette in hand.
“I want to apologize to the Academy” Oscars, he launched, without mentioning Chris Rock. “Love Makes You Do Crazy Things”argued Will Smith again after discussing the role of “protector of the family” of his character in The Williams Method.
What is Will Smith risking?
Los Angeles police say they are “aware of an incident between two people during” the Oscars, during which “one individual slapped another”. “The individual involved refused to file a complaint”, added the police, without naming Chris Rock. If he decides to file a complaint later, the police “will be available to complete an investigation report”she continued.