Rock uses this as a springboard to segue into Smith territory.
00:15 “He[Bardem] is praying that Will Smith wins,” jokes the comedian,still smiling,unaware of what is to come. The camera cuts to Will who laughs along,not yet feeling slap-happy.
00:23”Jada,I love you,” says Rock. “G.I. Jane 2,I can’t wait to see it.”
Now here is where it gets interesting. Rock’s joke is presumed to be a dig about Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head (the 1997 film,G.I. Jane starred Demi Moore as a Navy SEAL with a shaved head).
Aside from being dated (seriously,the film was released in 1997),Rock’s gag was seen to be in poor taste given Pinkett Smith suffers from alopecia.
00:28This bit is important. The camera pansback to Smith and Pinkett Smith. Smith is still laughing but Jada Pinkett rolls her eyes and shoots Rock a withering look that says:“I despise you and am about to manifest your very public comeuppance.”
00:37Having clocked Jada Pinkett’s reaction,Rock knows he may have slipped up here.
“That was a nice one!” says a visibly nervous Rock. Followed by “uh-oh” as he notices Smith making his way on stage.
00:40
We get our first look at Smith striding towards Rock. The Academy Awards loves a surprise,so the crowd is still nervously laughing and clapping,unsure of what is about to go down. Smith takes four steps before coming face to face with Rock.
00:42Then it happens,seemingly in slow motion,The Slap That Rocked The Oscars™.
Smith barely even winds up,instead opting to keep the slap short,sharp and open-handed. On the scale of famous slaps,it’s probably midway between Don Corleone clipping Johnny Fontane inThe Godfather,and Cher’s Academy Award-winning slap fromMoonstruck.
00:44Rock is rocked,his head momentarily snapping back,taking with it his hopes and dreams of ever starring in a film with Will Smith. “Oh,wow,wow” is all he manages as Smith storms off stage.
After composing himself,Rock utters the line that will undoubtedly haunt him forever:“Will Smith just slapped the s--t out of me.”
00:54This is around the time when everyone in the room realises this isn’t some kind of pre-planned stunt,Ellen is not about to appear and smooth everything over with pizza.
“Keep my wife’s name out of your f---ing mouth,” shouts Smith as the camera cuts back to him.
00:58Lupita Nyong’o delivers the perfect facial response to a public slapping event between two men with a collective age of 110 years old.
01:00Rock attempts damage control:“Dude,it was a G.I. Jane joke,” but Smith isn’t having it,forcefully repeating his instruction not to mention Jada’s name.
01:10A clearly embarrassed Rock,flush with embarrassment (and the actual pain of being slapped by Will Smith),desperately searches for a way to recover.
“That was,uh … the greatest night in the history of television,” says Rock,before finally getting around to handing out the Academy Award for Best Documentary (which went toSummer of Soul,by the way)
What happened next?
Following The Slap,Smith was spotted being comforted by Denzel Washington and Tyler Perry. He was also seen embracing Nicole Kidman and Bradley Cooper.
Aside from recruiting famous friends for #TeamWill,Smith got the final word. Shortly after the slap,he won Best Actor for his portrayal of Richard Williams in King Richard and could address the controversy,unopposed.
“Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family,” said a teary Smith. “In this time in my life,in this moment I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do.”
Which presumably means slapping people in public?
“I want to apologise to the Academy,I want to apologise to all my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment,” said Smith.
Now what?
According to theLos Angeles Times,the LAPD has confirmed that Chris Rock does not want to press charges against Will Smith.
The Academy has also released the following statement:“The Academy does not condone violence of any form. Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners,who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.”
But really the legacy of this slap will live on in the endless debates now raging online:Can comedians make jokes about anything? Was Smith simply defending his family’s honour? Is G.I. Jane a good movie?