Actor Will Smith has issued a public apology to comedian Chris Rock, whom he slapped onstage at the Oscars. It was a joke by Chris Rock regarding the shaved head of Jada Pinkett Smith, the wife of Will Smith suffering from alopecia – a disease causing severe hair loss, which she revealed to suffer from a few years ago -, which had triggered the scandal. Will Smith suddenly took the stage and slapped Chris Rock under the dumbfounded eyes of celebrities and viewers. The 53-year-old actor then yelled at him, “Leave my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth,” once back in his chair.
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. What I did was wrong and I was wrong,” Will Smith wrote on his Instagram account. “My behavior (…) at the Oscars was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are part of the job, but a joke regarding Jada’s health issue was too much for me and I reacted emotionally,” he explained, explicitly rejecting “any violence.” He also apologized to the organizers and all those who witnessed the scene. The apology came shortly following the Academy of Oscars announced the opening of an internal investigation into the incident. “The Academy condemns Mr. Smith’s actions during the show (…),” the organization wrote in a statement. “We have officially started an investigation”, specified the Academy of Arts and Sciences of the cinema, which will examine the follow-up to be given to the case with regard to its “regulations and Californian law”.
What is the risk of Will Smith, crowned best actor shortly following the incident for his role in The Williams Method? Some have called on the Academy of Oscars to withdraw her award, but actress Whoopi Goldberg, one of the Academy’s trustees, said that would not be the case. “There will be consequences, I’m sure, but I don’t think that’s what they’re going to do, especially because Chris (Rock) said he wouldn’t press charges,” he said. she declared. On the criminal plan either no prosecution seems possible at this stage for lack of complaint from Chris Rock, said the Los Angeles police. Will Smith would therefore only expose himself to disciplinary sanctions, which can range according to the code of conduct of the Academy from a simple reprimand to expulsion.
The first punishment inflicted on the actor came from social networks, where many denounced the violence he showed. The strongest condemnation came from actor and director Judd Apatow in a tweet that he later deleted, but comedian Mia Farrow took up: Will Smith “might have killed him. He simply lost control of his anger and his violence (…). He lost his mind”. Richard Williams, father of tennis champions Serena and Venus Williams who Will Smith plays in his film, said he “does not condone any violence once morest anyone”, according to NBC television. On Instagram, Will Smith also apologized to the Williams family and the film crew.
Some celebrities, however, have given their support to Will Smith. Former One Direction singer Liam Payne reacted: “I think whatever he did, he had the right to do it. The elected Democrat of Massachusetts Ayanna Pressley, also suffering from alopecia, thanked him in a tweet since deleted.
Source: AFP
Actor Will Smith has issued a public apology to comedian Chris Rock, whom he slapped onstage at the Oscars. It’s a joke by Chris Rock regarding the shaved head of Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith’s wife who suffers from alopecia – a disease causing severe hair loss, which she revealed to be suffering from a few years ago –,…
