It’s been approximately a year since Will Smith slapped Chris Rock onstage during the 94th Academy Awards. The slap occurred in response to Rock’s joke about Jada Pickett-Smith’s shaved hair. “Jada, I love. GI Jane 2 can’t wait to see it,” Rock joked. Smith sat back in his seat after the slap, yelling vulgarly at Rock, “Keep my wife’s name out your f**king mouth,” Smith shouted. The slap shook the world, causing a media frenzy. As a result, the Oscars banned Smith from attending the Academy Awards for a decade.
Smith made a public apology to Rock in response to the slap. Rock remained silent about the event, declining further discussion about the incident, until now. Chris Rock addressed the slap on his Netflix premiere, Selective Outrage, a year later. The comedic special aired in Pickett-Smith’s hometown of Baltimore, Maryland. Rock took swings at Smith and Pickett-Smith. “Y’all know what happen to me, being slapped by Shug Smith. It still hurts. I got summertime ringing in my ears.” Rock said to the crowd on his special.
Rock alluded to the Smith’s martial problems – Smith’s selective outrage, stemming frustration from his wife’s publicized affair with August Alsina. In July 2020, Smith-Pickett and Smith discussed Pickett-Smith’s affair with Alsina on her show, Red Table Talk. “She hurt him way more than he hurt me. Will Smith practice selective outrage. I didn’t have any entanglements. His wife was f**king her son’s friend,” Rock stated.
The comedy special, released on March 4, was the ultimate revenge by Rock. The Netflix special comes timely, approximately a year after the infamous slap on stage. The 95th Academy Awards will be broadcast live on March 12, 2023, on ABC.