Chris Rock shares the 'only way' he'd return to the Oscars after Will Smith slap
Chris Rock has opened up about the infamous 2022 Oscars slap he received by Will Smith whilst hosting the annual event, and what it would take for him to go back.
If you don’t know about the slap in question – there's something seriously wrong here.
Smith issued one of the most famously controversial slaps in modern history whilst at the 94th Academy Awards when he hit Chris Rock before picking up the Academy Award for Best Actor.
This led to him being banned from the celebrity event for a decade.
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In response, he called violence a ‘poison’, as he issued a statement on his actions.
The slap came as Rock hosted the event and seemed to take aim at his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith's shaved head, who for a long time has talked about her journey with Alopecia.
Rock said: "Jada, I love you, G.I. Jane 2, can’t wait to see it!"
Will Smith leapt to his wife's defence, as Pinkett-Smith has been diagnosed with the condition, resulting in hair loss.
Getting onto the stage, Smith hit Rock twice before returning to his seat and shouting back: "Keep my wife's name out of your f***ing mouth!"
It took a long time for Rock to talk about the incident, but he managed to turn it into comedy material one year later when he told his audience, ‘I got hit so hard I heard 'Summertime' ringing in my ears.’
Now that it has been three years since the incident, Rock is fully opening up about what happened, what it meant to him, and what it would take for him to attend the Oscars again.
Speaking with Variety in his first sit down interview since the slap happened, in a piece published today (September 8), he said he would only come back if and when he’s nominated for an award – and that’s it.
As for his thoughts on attending in the audience, he said: “I’m not getting nominated. The only way I’ll go back is if I’m nominated, and I’m not getting nominated. And that’s OK. We’ll deal with that if it happens. Like, let’s manage expectations.”
When asked if he’d consider hosting again, Rock said: “When people answer those questions, they’re being disrespectful to the people that got the gig. They have great hosts. Conan O’Brien is amazing. Nikki Glaser is amazing on the Golden Globes. I’m not going to say never, but my time might have passed, honestly. “
Then, when asked how he feels about the slap four years on, he explained that him being slapped isn’t what's important right now.
He shared: “Hey, man. You know, to answer your question a little bit, I wish nothing would have happened. And also, I don’t want to say anything that takes any attention away from Rosalind and how good she is in this movie. It’s a crazy world. We walk by homeless people. There’s all sorts of shit going on right now. Me having a bad day is not the biggest — it’s not that important.”
Rock is currently gearing up for the Toronto International Film Festival premiere of his first directorial prokect in the last 12 years via A24 - Misty Green.
Rosalind Eleazar (Slow Horses) is the title character, who is a once-famous actress struggling with the reality that her life is not what it was.
Topics: Chris Rock, Will Smith, Oscars, Celebrity
Britt Jones