Will Smith, an American actor and musician, has everything to his name – be it fame, wealth, or respect within the industry. He started his career as a rap musician and adopted his high school nickname, Fresh Prince and he earned a name for himself, after some time he shifted his focus towards Hollywood and had a shot at fame with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in which he portrayed himself as a fictional character.
Will Smith has never looked back since and has been one of the most successful actors in the history of Hollywood. But as the proverb goes – Too much fame will only consume you, Smith had a similar event that occurred to him at the 94th Academy Awards where he slapped Chris Rock, a comedian on stage when he made an unscripted joke aimed towards Jada Pinkett Smith while presenting an award. Though he faced serious consequences, AMPAS president Janet Yang has other thoughts about it.
AMPAS President Janet Yang’s Response to Will Smith’s Slap
The social media is pretty convinced that the 94th Academy Awards has been the most entertaining one for them solely because of Will Smith‘s outburst on stage, embarrassing himself in front of thousands of live audiences, actors, and reputed guests. Many have come forward saying that what he did was entirely wrong, misusing his fame in the industry while others stated him as a dangerous individual. Will Smith is currently banned from attending the Academy Awards and any other related events for the next 10 years and AMPAS President Janet Yang while at the 2023 Oscars Nominees Luncheon said,
“I’m sure you all remember we experienced an unprecedented event at the Oscars, what happened onstage was fully unacceptable and the response from our organisation was inadequate.”
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Janet Yang revealed while talking about the Will Smith incident that the response of the Academy at that time was “inadequate”. She stated that Will Smith’s slap was something they never predicted and did not have enough time to process the situation and hastily made a decision of banning Smith from the Academy Awards for the next decade. Yang further said that going forward, the Academy will be more vigilant toward matters concerning its public image and promises to be “fully transparent”.
Will Smith’s Slap To Chris Rock
Chris Rock who is a great stand-up comedian and a great host worked his way into the industry through his natural talent in being a comedian and also a well-versed actor. He has received many accolades throughout his career in the industry and earned much respect. Chris Rock at the 94th Academy Awards had a horrible time as while he was about to present an award, he made a joke regarding Jada Pinkett Smith’s hair condition and immediately regretted it as Smith took it upon himself to go on stage and slap him. After this incident, though Will Smith was instructed to be removed from the scene, he neglected their decision and stayed for the whole award show.
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness”
Though Will Smith has apologized to both the Academy and Chris Rock on multiple occasions and even released an official statement, Chris Rock has not replied to any of his apologies as he claims that he is not ready yet. Chris Rock reacted to the scenario like a professional and continued with the award presentation after the slap and even brushed it off while going to work the next day. Smith in his apology video claims to mend his ways and come back even stronger.
The 95th Academy Awards will be held on March 12, 2023.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
