The 94th Academy Awards had viewers shocked when actor Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on stage. Chris Rock had been making jokes about Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, particularly because of her shaved head. The actress suffers from alopecia, and Chris Rock decided to compare her look to Demi Moore’s in G.I. Jane. Specifically, he said that he looks forward to seeing her in “G.I. Jane 2.” The actress did not laugh and even rolled her eyes at the joke, and that’s when Will Smith soon approached Chris Rock and decided to slap him.
After returning to his seat, Will Smith declared the following:
“Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth!”
It was quite a shocking moment, and many viewers on social media were unsure if the encounter was real. But as it turns out, it was indeed real, and even LAPD offered to get involved. However, according to Variety, Chris Rock has declined to file a police report over the incident. Here’s the full statement made by the Los Angeles Police Department:
“LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program. The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”
Will Smith then attempted to offer the following apology after accepting his Best Actor award for King Richard:
“I want to apologize to the Academy. I want to apologize to all my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment and I’m not crying for winning an award. It’s not about winning an award for me. It’s about being able to shine a light on all of the people.”
At one point, after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock but before he won his award, Denzel Washington told the following to his fellow actor:
“At your highest moment, be careful, that’s when the devil comes for you.”
Fans can stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any potential future developments.