Chris Rock Responds To Will Smith’s Apology Video
Chris Rock has not publicly been interviewed about Will Smith slapping him, but he recently responded to Smith's apology video.
Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle continue to hit the road together on their European comedy tour, and audiences are getting both of their thoughts on the infamous Will Smith slap. Deadline recently reported on their stand-up show at the London O2 Arena and both comedians are touching on the subject. Although they didn’t spend an extended amount of time talking about Smith, they definitely got their jokes in.
Chris Rock, who was the one who Smith actually slapped, took the stage first and spoke about the incident more than he has in the past. He specifically addressed Will Smith’s apology video, which the actor posted to YouTube in July. In response to the video, Rock said “f*** your hostage video.” Rock also talked about how the slap hurt quite a bit, referencing the fact that Smith played one of the greatest boxers of all time in Ali. Rock also called Smith “Suge Smith,” a moniker he’s used for the actor since the slap happened, referring to Suge Knight, former music exec for Death Row Records. Knight is currently serving jail time for voluntary manslaughter.
Dave Chappelle didn’t have as much to say about Will Smith as Chris Rock did, understandably, but Chappelle had an on-stage attack of his own at the Hollywood Bowl in May. Chappelle’s on-stage attack was a bit more serious, as the attacker was armed with a weapon. Chappelle was tackled by the assailant and the comedian walked away unharmed. Rock, who was also at that show, came on stage and joked “was that Will Smith?” At the recent London show with Rock, Chappelle referenced his own on-stage incident, calling it “some scary s***.” He also joked that Rock was able to upstage him by making the Will Smith joke. Chappelle wrapped up his set noting that Smith “did an impression of a perfect man for 30 years.”
The incident that Chris Rock and Dave Chapelle are referring to happened at the 94th Academy Awards in March. During the ceremonies, Chris Rock made a GI Jane joke addressing Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head. Pinkett Smith, who has alopecia, rolled her eyes at the joke. Despite seeming to laugh at the barb initially, Will Smith took the stage and slapped Rock following the joke. Smith then returned to his seat and yelled at Rock to “keep my wife’s name out your f****** mouth.” Later in the night, Smith would go on to win the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in King Richard. Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences following the event and the Academy subsequently banned Smith from all Oscars events for the next ten years.
While Chris Rock hasn’t done an official interview about the slapping incident, he has made quite a few comments during his comedy shows, including these most recent ones. It seems likely that we’ll hear more of Rock’s thoughts on the matter as he continues to tour. Meanwhile, you can see Chris Rock in his next film Amsterdam when it hits theaters on October 7. Amsterdam is directed and written by David O. Russell and stars Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, and John David Washington as three friends in the 1930s who witness a murder and become suspects themselves.
