Chris Rock is a sharp-witted fellow
but some think he crossed the line
when he ad-libbed his joke at the Oscars
about Jada Pinkett-Smith’s
closely shaven head.
“Jada, I love you, ‘G.I Jane 2,’
can’t wait to see it.”
Jada’s husband Will Smith
laughed for a second
but then his inner demons took over
and
he left his chair and strode to the stage
and smacked Chris Rock in the face.
“Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth!”
“Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth!”
The audience gasped. Was this staged?
ABC televised the slap but
bleeped the coarse words
and promptly
cut to a commercial break.
Denzel Washington rushed to Will Smith’s aid
and officials asked Will to leave the room
but he wouldn’t move from his chair.
Forty minutes later he was back on stage
to receive the Best Actor award
for his portrayal of Richard Williams,
Venus and Serena’s volatile dad.
The Hollywood audience
burst into a standing ovation.
In a sobbing, rambling speech
Will Smith apologized to the Academy
and to his fellow nominees,
likening himself to Richard Williams,
“a fierce defender of his family.”
Meanwhile Jane Campion won for Best Director
and Coda was deemed the Best Picture,
but six months from now
all we’ll remember
of the 2022 Oscars
is Will Smith slapping Chris Rock.
