Prolific actor, comedian and Oscar winner, Will Smith, in a nearly six-minute video says he is “deeply remorseful” for slapping comedian Chris Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards.
Smith, said that he has “been doing a lot of thinking and personal work” over the past few months and he was ready to answer questions related to the incident.
“I’ve reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that he’s not ready to talk, and when he is, he will reach out,” the “King Richard” actor said in the video.
“So I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you,” Smith said. “My behavior was unacceptable and I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk.”
The actor extended his apologies to Rock’s family, including his mother and younger brother, actor and comedian Tony Rock.
“I want to apologize to Chris’s mother. I saw an interview that Chris’s mother did, and that was one of the things I just didn’t realize. You know, I wasn’t thinking, but how many people got hurt in that moment,” he said, before apologizing to Tony Rock.
“You know, we had a great relationship. Tony Rock was my man,” he said. “This is probably irreparable.”
"I spent the last three months replaying and understanding the nuances and the complexities of what happened in that moment.”
“I’m not going to try to unpack all of that right now, but I can say to all of you, there is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment,” the actor explained. “There’s no part of me that thinks that is the optimal way to handle a feeling of disrespect or insult.”
On rumours that he slapped Rock onstage at the Oscars at the urging of his wife, Jada Pinkett, in the July 29 Instagram post, Will read the fan question aloud;
"After Jada rolled her eyes did she tell you to do something?" Asked the fan.
Simply put, Will Smith's answer is "No."
Will continued, "It's like, you know, I made a choice on my own, from my own experiences, from my history with Chris. Jada had nothing to do with it."
The actor then went on to directly apologize to Jada and their two kids Jaden, 24, and Willow, 21. "I'm sorry babe," he said. "I want to say sorry to my kids and my family for the heat that I brought on all of us."
Comedian Chris Rock had joked about Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, suggesting she would appear in “G.I. Jane 2.” Pinkett Smith has publicly shared her journey with embracing alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss.
The Oscar winner also tendered apologizes to his family and friends, his fellow nominees and members of the Academy, and Questlove, who won the award that Rock was presenting.
“I am deeply remorseful, and I’m trying to be remorseful without being ashamed of myself,” he added. “Right? I’m human. And I made a mistake and I’m trying not to think of myself as a piece of shit.”
“I know it was confusing, I know it was shocking, but I promise you ― I am deeply devoted and committed to putting light and love and joy into the world,” Smith said. “And, if you hang on, I promise we’ll be able to be friends again.”
The Oscars described the scene "unacceptable and harmful behaviour" on stage. Thereby, issued a ban on Smith from Academy events for the next 10 years.
It claimed Smith was asked to leave the award ceremony after the slap but he refused, with a producer later clarifying Rock himself did not want Smith ejected with force or arrested by police.
Will Smith won his first Oscar for his role in King Richard - a film about the father of Serena and Venus Williams, at the same event, after the incident.
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