Will Smith returned to the awards season celebrations on Wednesday night, taking the stage to accept the Beacon Award at the African American Film Critics Association Awards. The speech marked Smith’s first in-person speech at an awards show since his controversy at the 2022 Oscars, in which the actor slapped Chris Rock onstage.
Smith’s “Emancipation” co-star Charmaine Bingwa and AAFCA co-founder Gil L. Robertson introduced Smith and Antoine Fuqua, the director of the historical drama, early in the evening of the ceremony. After Fuqua spent minutes thanking AAFCA, Apple TV+ and the film’s cast and crew, Smith took the mic to narrate the film’s production.
“’Emancipation’ was the most individually difficult film of my entire career. It was all outdoors, that’s right,” joked Smith, drawing laughter from the crowd.
“It was the second day of shooting and 110 degrees… I was in a scene with one of the white actors. The actor decided ad lib. So let’s do the scene. I made my line. He made his line. And then he spat — ad lib — right in the middle of my chest,” Smith said as the crowd groaned. “The actor felt the ad lib had gone well. So let’s take two. i make my line He makes his line – and spits right in my chest again… I hear a voice in the distance. And Antoine says, ‘Hey, let’s take a no-spit shot.’ And in that moment I knew that God is real.”
“I want to thank Gil and AAFCA. I want to thank all of you in this room for doing what you are doing and keeping our stories alive. I want to thank Apple because budget was one thing. And then the budget was another matter. And then the budget was another matter. And Apple never flinched,” Smith said. “It was the first time I’d heard from a studio that story was more important than cost of execution… They make iPhones. You can do it.”
Before the awards ceremony, Bingwa Variety told Variety on the red carpet that Smith went out of his way to show his appreciation for the “Emancipation” actors, who filmed a particularly difficult scene. “There was a scene where people had to be dead in a tunnel… And Will just said, ‘You guys are doing a fantastic job. I know it’s really tough.’ And he gave them all an extra $1,000 out of his own pocket,” Bingwa said. “He’s just a great guy.”
Bingwa also joked that Smith had to wash his feet repeatedly to film the film’s opening scene. “We always laugh that he had to wash my feet several times in that opening scene. It’s a great foot massage,” she said.
AAFCA is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, honoring films like The Woman King, The Inspection, Nanny and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Other special winners on Wednesday night included “Till” for the Impact Award; “Nope” composer Michael Abels for the Innovator Award; Wakanda Forever Production Designer Hannah Beachler for the Building Change Award presented by Lowes; and “Wakanda Forever” producer Nate Moore for the Ashley Boone Award.