Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the #Oscars after the comedian made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith's hair loss while presenting the award for documentary feature.
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) March 28, 2022
Read more at https://t.co/0VT4GGR7UQ pic.twitter.com/DxKqENRfD3
Everyone has an opinion on who was the villain in this fiasco.
I'm having this internal struggle because my brain wants to choose sides. Will Smith did this on live TV to a guy who didn't see it coming. Chris Rock had no idea that Will Smith was violently upset until the very... last... second.
That must've been 1) painful, 2) embarrassing, 3) literally traumatic.
When the voice in my head switches to Will Smith's point of view it goes like this... 'A comedian made an insensitive joke about my wife... does he know about Jada's alopecia? Does it matter? He still crossed the line. Some people need to be taught a lesson, don't they? Anger rises, ability to think rationally subsides. It's slap time.'
Then I'm back to Chris Rock's brain...
'Everybody loves it when Ricky Gervais makes fun of celebrities at the award shows. I makes fun of people for a living. I was just doing what I usually do. Why was it suddenly not OK to do it? Has Will Smith never seen my act before? I've said way worse things.'
'Everybody loves it when Ricky Gervais makes fun of celebrities at the award shows. I makes fun of people for a living. I was just doing what I usually do. Why was it suddenly not OK to do it? Has Will Smith never seen my act before? I've said way worse things.'
What about Jada? How is she holding up? Everybody's so focused on the other stuff that it's easy to forget that she's being drawn into this when it looked as though she was prepared to shake off Chris Rock's joke with an eye roll/ cold stare.
Then there's the other award winners... the big slap derailed the whole show. Will Smith apologized during his acceptance speech, but this year's Oscars will only be remembered as the Slapcademy Awards (sorry Coda, but congratulations anyway!)
Medical:
Things I did not know before...
Jada Pinkett Smith has alopecia... Chris Rock has a learning disability (NVLD).
Religion:
Will Smith in his acceptance speech for Best Actor said - "I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do and be in this world..."
Will Smith in his acceptance speech for Best Actor said - "I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do and be in this world..."
I'm OK with God mentions. I'm a God guy. But to me, it sounded like Will was saying God called on him to stand up for his family and... I guess smack Chris Rock? Is that what it sounded like to you? I might be wrong about his meaning.
Whenever people do violence and then start talking about God, that aint good.
Will Smith’s acceptance speech as he wins his first ever #Oscar pic.twitter.com/qKVTOb7V6Q
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) March 28, 2022
Losing control:
It's easy to make fun of celebrities. Behavior-wise, some celebs are just baffling. I guess you could say the same about Larry from our office who keeps trying to move staplers with his mind - "They're too heavy for my brain, but I'll get there!"
People are people. Sometimes we make good decisions, sometimes bad.
People are people. Sometimes we make good decisions, sometimes bad.
I hope Will Smith learns to take a few deep breaths before throwing hands around.
I hope Chris Rock rethinks his comedy choices.
I hope Jada gets her best life.
This whole thing has really soured me on the Sparkly Pizzazz of Hollywood.
