Comedian Wanda Sykes was one of the hosts of Oscars 2022, and she recently gets candid about that infamous slap. Wanda Sykes said she is still processing Will Smith’s infamous Oscars slap. While on a comedy tour stop in Orlando, Florida, the comedian revealed that she remains unsettled after Smith slapped Chris Rock during the 2022 Academy Awards in March.
During an event at the Dr Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Sykes told audience members that “I can’t talk about it. I get emotional.” While referring to how Smith remained seated during the ceremony, before later winning the Best Actor award, the comedian said, “I couldn’t believe he was still sitting there, like an ass****.” Shouldn’t you be sitting there with a lawyer or LAPD?” Sykes added, “I hope he gets his s**t together. Until then, f*** him.”
For unversed, during the 2022 Oscars, Smith walked on stage and struck Rock in response to a joke the comedian made about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head. However, after slapping Rock, Smith returned to his seat and shouted, “Keep my wife’s name out of your mouth!” to a stunned Rock, who moved the show forward by presenting an award after being initially speechless.
Since the incident, Smith has publicly apologised to Rock, saying he “reacted emotionally” because the “joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear.” King Richards actor has since resigned from the Academy, which has also banned the actor from attending its events for the next 10 years. Smith also has been working on himself and travelled to India for spiritual purposes.
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Sykes has previously spoken out about the Oscars incident. During an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show days after the slap, the star said that she “physically felt ill” watching the occurrence. “And for them to let (Will) stay in that room and enjoy the rest of the show and accept his award, I was like, ‘How gross is this?’ This sends the wrong message,” Sykes added at the time.
Sykes also shared how the incident played out from her perspective as a host, telling Ellen DeGeneres that she “felt so awful for my friend Chris” when she found out about it while backstage. “I saw Chris at Guy Oseary’s afterparty and as soon as I walked up to him, the first thing he said is, ‘I’m so sorry.’ I was like, ‘Why are you apologizing?'” said Sykes. “He was like, ‘It was supposed to be your night. You and Amy and Regina were doing such a great job. I’m so sorry this is now gonna be about this.’ “