It took nearly a year to “process” the slap Will Smith received during the 2022 Academy Awards, but eventually Chris Rock decided to speak out at length and decided to do so on an occasion that gave him a free hand Let, namely his stand-up comedy show, broadcast Saturday evening (US time) live streaming on Netflix. The show, which will be staged at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theater, is titled “Selective Outrage,” a name also inspired by Will Smith’s behavior, the comedian once said.
Chris Rock began with a joke that immediately brought to mind the fateful slap: “Tonight I’m going to try to do a show without offending anyone. I’ll do my best because you never know who might be annoyed. People always say words hurt… But anyone who says that has never been slapped in the face.”
Then the American comedian delivered his remarks on the gesture, which shocked audiences around the world for the last 10 minutes (for which Smith repeatedly apologized), addressing many topics in an hour show, from abortion to racism in the US Kardashian family on American ‘wakeness’. When his humor was aimed at “attention seekers who see themselves as victims,” he spoke of himself: “You all know what happened, I got a slap in the face a year ago. I was hit by that punch… And people ask me, “Did it hurt you?” It still hurts. I have “Summertime” ringing in my ears – he said – . But I’m not a victim, you’ll never see me cry on Oprah. will never happen I parried the punch like Pacquiao. did it hurt me Yes, it hurt me».
Chris Rock, who was back at the scene a few days after the incident but said he didn’t want to comment because he was still processing, also reconstructed the episode to explain that he and Smith weren’t that day had argued: “First, I know you can’t see it on video, but Will Smith is a lot taller than me. We are not the same size. Will Smith makes shirtless movies, but you’ll never see me shirtless. Even if I’m having open-heart surgery in a movie, I’ll wear a sweater. Will Smith made Muhammad Ali in a movie. Do you think I auditioned for this role? He did Muhammad Ali, I did Pookie in New Jack City».
The slap inspired his show’s title, he continued, focusing on the infidelity of Jada Pinkett Smith, the actor’s wife, with singer August Alsina, who she publicly confessed to her husband: “Will Smith practices selective outrage. Everyone knows what happened. And actually everyone knows that I have nothing to do with the stuff, I never had any “involvement”. His wife slept with her son’s boyfriend, okay? I wouldn’t talk about it but for some reason they mentioned it on the internet. I don’t know why two such talented people would do something so low. What the hell? Everyone here has been scammed, but none of us have been interviewed on TV by the person who scammed us. She hurt him more than he hurt me.”
Rock added that he tried to call Will Smith after the accident “to give him my condolences. But he didn’t answer me.” And he continued, “I’ve loved Will Smith all my life. He’s made some great movies and I’ve always rooted for him. And now I’m watching Emancipation (where Will Smith did a Plays slaves, editor’s note) only to see him beaten.” The comedian finally explained why he did not react to the slap that evening: “Because I have parents. I was brought up. And you know, what my parents taught me? Don’t argue in front of white people.”