While it seems clear that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will take steps to discipline Will Smith after the infamous slap, the prevailing view in Hollywood is that the incident will prove to be nothing more than a minor bump in the star’s life long acting career.
“He’s not kryptonite yet,” says one studio executive. “He has to sit in the penalty area for a bit. He’s going to do an interview with someone like Gayle King and it kind of washes away.” Smith’s long history in the business will help with that, this person continues: “He was never violent on set. He was particularly accommodating. And you read what he did on the set of King Richard.” (Among other gestures, Smith gave the film’s cast bonuses to compensate for the film’s day-and-date release on HBO Max.)
Another longtime studio exec agrees there’s still work to be done when it comes to how Smith makes it into the future. For example, if he could publicly reconcile with Chris Rock, it could help boost his image. But this top industry veteran is a little more cautious, saying that anyone who casts Smith in a film or series should weigh the challenge of promoting a project, knowing that reporters will inevitably leave Smith and other cast members after the incident would ask. “I think [studios] would think twice – do you need the aggravation?” he says. “Anyone would do the equation. “I have Will Smith, but now I have this baggage and they’re going to show the slap again. Do I need this and is such and such available?’ The other side is, “I’ve got Will Smith and he needs a comeback and I’m going to restore his shine.” They would weigh factors – what the film is, what the cost is. When [his reps] say, “Will really wants to do this and he cares,” there are ways for him to say, “I’m going to lower my price, but I’m not [permanently] cut.'”
But a marketing executive says she believes Smith will suffer more permanent damage. She feels he revealed a dark side, and that the whole sequence of events — the slap, the self-justifying acceptance speech, the dancing at the Vanity Fair party, and an apology on Instagram that struck her as shallow and disingenuous — will inflict permanent damage. She also believes Smith’s long career has overexposed him. Some of his more recent projects, including 2019’s Gemini Man and 2016’s Collateral Beauty, have received poor reviews and underperformed, she points out.
Smith is now in post-production for Apple+’s slave escape drama Emancipation. The streamer had planned a debut for 2022 but hadn’t dated its release yet. Apple declined to comment. Otherwise, Smith has a few projects in pre-production, including Bad Boys 4, but no release dates have been set. A studio executive is wondering if Smith wants to get back in front of the camera now that he has an Oscar, or if he will focus on producing.
One area where Smith can be challenged is in the prize area. Cast member Rutanya Alda told THR that Smith “wish I hadn’t voted for him. It changed the whole tone of the evening. I will never vote for anything that has Will Smith in it again.” A media professional who votes on awards agrees that he would not vote for Smith in the future. “To attack a man and then end the night dancing at the Vanity Fair party — talk about doing it all wrong,” he said. Since Emancipation appears to be a sweepstakes, such feelings could well hurt his prospects in that regard.
One studio believes the right response from the academy is to permanently ban Smith – which could actually be doing him a favor. “It won’t affect his career, but people will think he got his punishment and we can forgive him,” he says. “And he can say, ‘I deserve this. I disrespected the academy, and I deserved it.'” (Smith would still be eligible for awards.)
In fact, this person believes that the Academy could suffer more lasting reputational damage than Smith did if they “evade” in disciplining the star. Tim Solberg, a professor of business of the arts at Washington University’s Olin Business School in St. Louis, also believes Smith will not take any action from the incident, but “the academy itself could be harmed if it doesn’t take action.” .”
Smith’s own business ventures could also be impacted by the moment. He is a Fitbit brand ambassador and told THR, “We are assessing the situation and do not have any information to share at this time.”
Westbrook Inc., the production company controlled by the actor and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, raised $60 million at a $600 million valuation from Blackstone-backed Candle Media in January. The high rating was partially justified by Smith’s immense fame, as everyone in town seemed eager to work with him, and Westbrook secured a piece of every project the couple starred in (as well as other projects like Bel Air and Cobra Kai).
If Smith is no longer welcomed by studios or other stars, it would almost certainly have a negative impact on Westbrook and his potential business, fresh off his fundraising should it be in expansion mode.
Alex Weprin and Danielle Directo-Meston contributed to this report.