Will Smith apologized to Chris Rock on Monday for slapping the comedian at Sunday night’s Oscars ceremony, issuing a statement after the film academy said it might take action against Smith for an incident that overshadowed the industry’s top awards.
Smith, in a post on Instagram, said his behavior at the televised ceremony was “unacceptable and inexcusable.”
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris,” Smith wrote. “I was out of line and I was wrong.”
Smith strode on stage and struck Rock in the face after the comedian made a joke about the appearance of Smith’s wife. Less than an hour later, Smith won best actor for his role as the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams in “King Richard.”
Rock, in a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith, had referenced the 1997 film “G.I. Jane” in which actress Demi Moore shaved her head. It was unclear whether Rock was aware that Smith’s wife has a disease that causes hair loss.
“Jokes at my expense are part of the job,” Smith said on Monday, “but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally.”
In his statement, Smith also apologized to the academy, show producers, attendees, viewers, the Williams family and “my King Richard family.”
But it was Smith’s outburst that went viral, with pictures and video ricocheting across social media.
Television viewership jumped sharply this year, to an average of 15.36 million people, a 56% boost from 2021, according to preliminary estimates. (Reuters)
