Moving on. After Will Smith made headlines for slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars, Jada Pinkett Smith addressed the situation.
“This is a season for healing and I’m here for it,” read an Instagram quote posted by Pinkett Smith, 50, on Tuesday, March 29.
The social media upload comes shortly after Rock, 57, made a joke about the Girls Trip star’s shaved head while presenting an award on Sunday, March 27. Pinkett Smith, who has been candid about her alopecia diagnosis, rolled her eyes at the comment.
In response, Smith, 53, approached the stage and slapped the comedian on camera before the live segment was muted.
“Will Smith just f—king smacked the s—t out of me,” the Saturday Night Live alum said as the Suicide Squad star returned to his seat before yelling, “Keep my wife’s name out your f—king mouth.”
At the time, a source exclusively told Us Weekly that people were worried about Smith and Rock crossing paths again at the awards show. “The higher-ups from the Academy, once they realized the slap was real, were first focused on making sure Chris was OK,” the insider revealed on Monday, March 28, noting that it wasn’t immediately clear whether the incident was staged. “Several workers went to check on [Chris] after the slap and he told everyone he was fine.”
According to a second source, the pair “did not see each other” after the altercation. “Everyone knew where Chris and Will were afterward and were not about to let them interact again for safety reasons,” the first insider shared.
That same day, the Academy Award winner apologized for his “unacceptable and inexcusable” actions toward Rock. “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness,” he wrote via Instagram on Monday, March 28.
Smith added: “I would also like to apologize to The Academy, the producers of the show, all the attendees and everyone watching around the world. I would like to apologize to the Williams Family and my King Richard Family. I deeply regret that my behavior has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us.”
The South Carolina native, who has not yet addressed the shocking incident, previously raised eyebrows when he called out the couple for boycotting the Oscars.
“Jada got mad, said she’s not coming. Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties. I wasn’t invited,” Rock, who has worked with Smith and Pinkett Smith in the past, said during his opening monologue in 2016. “You get mad. It’s not fair that Will was this good and didn’t get nominated. It’s also not fair that Will was paid $20 million for Wild Wild West. This year at the Oscars, things are going to be a little different.”
