The United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday that it had launched “a formal investigation.” actor Will Smith’s slap in the face He beat comedian Chris Rock during this Sunday’s Oscars.
The academy said so too “condemned” what happened.
Comedian Chris Rock compared Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head to Demi Moore’s in the film GI Jane. Rock joked, “Jada I love you. GI Jane 2, I can’t wait to see it, ok?”
Will Smith smiled first, but then went on stage to hit him. It was assumed this was part of the routine, but doubts were allayed when the actor shouted from his seat, “Don’t mention my wife’s name in your damn mouth.”
“It was the best night in television history,” Rock said, before resuming his role as host.
Smith collects Oscar after beating Chris Rock and apologizes
Minutes later, Smith returned to the stage to accept an Oscar for Best Actor. In his speech, he apologized to the members of the Academy and his fellow candidates, but not to Rock.
“In my life, I’m asked to love people and protect people and be a flow for my people,” Smith said during his acceptance speech.
“I know you have to be able to take abuse to do what we do. You need to be able to get people to say bad things about you. In this business you need to be able to make people disrespect you. And she has to smile and act like that’s okay.
“I hope the Academy invites me back,” Will Smith said at the end of his speech on stage.
The Hollywood Reporter’s media reported that members of the Academy had met this Monday, which is customary after every gala. It is not known if the Smith case was on his agenda.
Jada Pinkett Smith and her battle with alopecia
In 2018, Jada Pinkett Smith revealed that she suffered from alopecia, or baldness, a condition characterized by hair loss. When it occurs and how alopecia develops depends on each person. Sometimes it’s just a temporary thing.
“A lot of people ask me why I wear turbans (…) It’s not easy to talk about it, but I will do it,” he said on Red Table Talk when disclosing his diagnosis. He then spoke candidly about the “terrible” moment in the shower when he realized he’d lost a “handful of hair.”
“I said, ‘My God, am I going bald?’ It was one of those moments in my life where I was literally shaking with fear. That’s why I cut my hair and will continue to do so,” he said.
Since then, Jada Pinkett Smith has posed on the red carpet with short hair, bows or turbans.
