By Chantal DaSilva – NBC News
Will Smith’s slap in the face to Chris Rock at the Oscars stunned attendees and immediately sparked backlash online, including from a litany of celebrities.
The actor’s confrontation with the comedian on stage dominated Sunday’s 94th Academy Awards after Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith, who suffered from alopecia.
[Ariana DeBose hace historia como la primera actriz afrolatina abiertamente queer en ganar un Oscar]
In the hours following the altercation, celebrities expressed a mixture of shock, disappointment and outrage at the incident. Some also expressed support for Smith, who ended up winning the best actor award for his starring role in the film King Richard.
In a now-deleted tweet, director Judd Apatow slammed Smith’s actions, saying: “He could have killed (Rock). This is pure anger and out of control violence.”
“In the last three decades, a million jokes have been heard about her. You are not new to the world of Hollywood and comedy. He’s lost his mind”said the director of Funny People.
Rock had cracked a joke as he prepared to present the Best Documentary Award. “Jade, I love you. ‘GI Jane 2’ can’t wait to see you,” the comedian said, an obvious reference to Pinkett Smith’s shaved head since the actress revealed in 2018 that she suffers from alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss.
[Varios de los asistentes a los premios Oscar se solidarizarán con la causa ucraniana]
The comment received a quick reaction from Smith, who took the stage and slapped Rock in the face before telling the comedian to “keep my wife’s name out of her mouth.”
Smith later apologized to the film academy and his peers by accepting the Best Actor Oscar for his role in King Richard, where he plays the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams.
“Art imitates life. I look like the crazy dad they say about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things,” he said in a tearful speech. He didn’t directly apologize to Rock, who police said refused to file a report about the incident.
[El talento latino gana espacio en los premios Oscar pero le queda mucho camino por recorrer]
“It was crazy,” said actor LaKeith Stanfield diversity at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party after the awards ceremony. “I don’t know, it was surreal,” he said.
Actress Minnie Driver also said of the after-party that it was “hard to watch” the altercation unfold. “We all witnessed something that caused our emotions to run high,” he said, adding he hoped “they would reconcile later.”
“Violence is not okay. Aggression is never the answer.”Actress and director Sophia Bush tweeted. However, he also voiced his criticism of Rock’s joke, noting, “This is the second time Chris has made fun of Jada onstage at the Oscars and tonight he fought back because of his alopecia,” he pointed out.
Bradley Cooper and Will Smith during an Oscar break at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, California on Sunday, March 27, 2022. Chris Pizzello / Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP“It’s wrong to make a joke about someone’s autoimmune disease. Doing it on purpose is cruel. Both need a break.”
[El actor estadounidense Bob Saget murió por un traumatismo craneal, anuncia su familia]
Bush appeared to be referring to the 2016 Oscars, which Rock Pinkett mocked Smith for boycotting the ceremony as part of the Oscars So White movement. Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties. I wasn’t invited,” she said at the awards ceremony.
However, actress Mia Farrow defended Rock’s comments, tweeting, “It was just a joke.”
“Chris Rock pulls pranks. He’s always been brave. This was a gentle joke for him. And I love GI Jane,” Farrow said.
NBA star Stephen Curry, the executive producer of Queen of Basketball, the short film that won Best Documentary, said he was “shocked by the whole thing.”
“But with all the needless drama, at least we have Denzel’s catchphrase for the night,” he said, referring to words of wisdom Smith said actor Denzel Washington said before winning the Oscar: “In your best moment, be careful. Then the devil will come for you.”
[Muere el actor y modelo Gaspard Ulliel a los 37 años tras sufrir un accidente de esquí]
Actress and model Jodie Turner-Smith said she is still “processing” the incident, writing: “I am ashamed of everyone involved.”
A few celebrities also showed up to express their support for Smith, including Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s son, Jaden Smith.
“And that’s how we do it,” Jaden Smith wrote in a tweet later that night. Exactly what he was referring to was unclear.
For his part, rapper and actor 50 Cent appeared to downplay the incident, sharing a photo of the altercation, saying, “B—-never play games with me. lol”.
In an interview on the red carpet Speaking on British television show Good Morning Britain, former One Direction member Liam Payne also appeared to defend Smith’s actions, saying: “I think whatever he was feeling, he had a right to do it.”
He called Smith’s speech and tearful apology for the incident a “powerful moment” in which he witnessed “one of the most emotional people in the world … speak from the heart,” and said he’d “rather emphasize the beauty of the situation.” than the pain.”
In a brief statement after the incident, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said it “does not condone any form of violence.”
“Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our winners of the 94th Academy Awards, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and film lovers around the world,” he said.