Comedian and actor Chris Rock was engulfed in a controversy this year when actor Will Smith slapped him on stage during the 94rd Academy Awards night. Chris has reportedly turned down the Academy’s offer to host 2023 Oscar ceremony and doesn’t want to revisit the evening
According to Arizona Republic, during a comedy show at the Arizona Financial Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona, on Sunday, Chris drew parallels between hosting the Oscars and returning to the scene of a crime. While discussing the hosting offer, he made a reference to the 1995 murder trial of O.J. Simpson, noting that it would be like asking the late Nicole Brown Simpson “to go back to the restaurant” where her mother had left a pair of glasses the night of her death.
Talking about Will, Chris said that “He is bigger than me. The state of Nevada would not sanction a fight between me and Will Smith.” The comedian had earlier also turned down Super Bowl ad after the slapping incident.
During the 2022 Oscar ceremony, Chris had started his Oscar gig by making a joke of Will’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s hairstyle. While Chris was unaware of her medical condition that had led to it, Will did not take the joke kindly and walked up to the stage to slap Chris. Post that Will apologised twice and as a consequence was banned from attending Oscars for 10 years.
In the apology video, Will said, “Why didn’t you apologize to Chris Rock in the acceptance speech?” In his reply, Smith said that he reached out to Rock, who wasn’t “ready to talk”. The Men in Black star added, “I will say to you, Chris, I apologise to you. My behavior was unacceptable and I am here whenever you are ready to talk.”
Will had also clarified that Jada has nothing to do with the slap and his actions were solely based on his judgement and previous experience with Chris. Will, during the same Oscar ceremony won the award for Best Actor for his movie King Richard.