Will Smith Opens Up About Infamous Oscar Slap: That Was A Rage That Had Been Bottled For A Long Time

November 29, 2022 by Tsai-Ann Hill in Film with 0 Comments

Will Smith

Will Smith Opens Up About Infamous Oscar Slap: That Was A Rage That Had Been Bottled For A Long Time

Will Smith was candid about what led him to slap Chris Rock at the Oscars.

On Monday night (Nov. 28) acting legend Will Smith appeared as a guest on “The Daily Show” where he opened up to Trevor Noah about his infamous slap at this year’s Oscars. As previously reported, after Chris Rock made a questionable joke while on stage comparing G.I Jane to Jada Pinkett Smith — who battles alopecia — Will Smith walked onto the stage and slapped the comedian. Will Smith — who won his first Academy Award later that night — then walked back to his seat and demanded that Chris Rock keep his wife’s name out of his mouth.

While promoting his forthcoming film “Emancipation,” the “Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air” actor shared what life has been like since the shocking incident. Smith said:

“That was a horrific night as you can imagine. There’s many nuances and complexities to it. At the end of the day, I lost it.”

He continued:

“I guess what I would say, you just never know what somebody is going through.”

After explaining to the audience that someone around them is always going through something, the 54-year-old added:

“I was going through something that night. Not that that justifies my behavior at all.”

Will Smith

Elaborating on what he learned from the situation, the movie producer said:

“We just gotta be nice to each other man. It’s hard and I guess the thing that was most painful for me is I took my hard and made it hard for other people. I understood the idea where they say ‘hurt people hurt people.’”

The father of three continued:

“It was a lot of things. I was the little boy that watched his father beat up his mother. All of that just bubbled up in that moment. That’s not who I wanna be.”

The “King Richard” actor jokingly disclaimed that Trevor Noah can attest to that and not the audience. Trevor Noah admitted that that’s not who the actor is, which brought Smith to tears. The Philadelphia native added:

“I understand how shocking that was for people, man.”

Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith

Admitting that he was stunned by his actions, he said:

“I was gone. That was a rage that had been bottled for a really long time. I understand the pain.”

Smith emotionally reflected on seemingly disappointing his nephew Dom, who he described as the “sweetest little boy.” Smith said Dom stayed up late so he could see his uncle when he got home from the Oscars. Amid sitting on Smith’s lap holding the Oscars, Dom asked him:

“Why did you hit that man uncle Will?”

Smith, who’s banned from attending the Oscars for the next 10 years, then continued to share his frustration with moviegoers possibly not going to see “Emancipation” because of a “horrific decision” on his part. He explained:

“I think that was one of the big things for me over this last couple of months. I had to forgive myself for being human. Trust me, there’s nobody that hates the fact that I’m human more than me. Finding that space for myself within myself to be human. I’ve always wanted to be Superman. I’ve always wanted to swoop in and save the damsel in distress. I had to humble down and realize that I’m a flawed human and I still have an opportunity to go out in the world and contribute in a way that fills my heart and hopefully helps other people.”