Will Smith Apologises To Chris Rock For His Oscars Slap

In a new video, Will Smith expressed his apology to Chris Rock for the notorious slap at the 2022 Oscars.

In his winning speech, Will covered a number of topics, including why he hadn’t already apologised to Chris earlier. Will Smith, 53, has finally spoken out about the incident that occurred four months after he slapped Chris Rock, 57, at the Oscars. In a video posted to his Instagram on July 29, the actor expressed his regrets to Chris. “It’s been a minute…Over the last few months I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and personal work,” says a message from Will on the screen.

“You asked a lot of fair questions that I wanted to take some time to answer.” Will then sat down and started talking about the incident. Will said, “I was fogged out by that point,” when asked why he didn’t apologise to Chris during his victory speech for Best Actor. It’s all fuzzy.” “I’ve reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that he’s not ready to talk and when he is, he will reach out,” he continued.

“So, I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you. My behaviour was unacceptable,” Will said while looking directly at the camera. “I want to apologize to Chris’s mother. I saw an interview that Chris’s mother did. And that was one of the things about that moment I just didn’t realize. I wasn’t thinking how many people got hurt at that moment. So I want to apologize to Chris’s mother. I want to apologize to Chris’s family. Specifically, Tony Rock. We had a great relationship. Tony Rock was my man. And this is probably irreparable,” Smith continued.

Will also added, “I spent the last three months replaying and understanding the nuances and the complexities of what happened at that moment. And I’m not going to try to unpack all of that right now. But I can say to all of you, that there is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave at that moment. There is no part of me that thinks that’s the optimal way to handle a feeling of disrespect or insults.”

Will said that his wife Jada Pinkett Smith did not have any influence on his choice to smack Chris, who had just made fun of Jada’s bald head who has alopecia. “I made a choice on my own. From my own experiences, from my history with Chris, Jada had nothing to do with it,” he said. He also apologised to his children and his fellow Best Actor candidates. Will was also questioned in the video about what he would say to his unhappy supporters.

“Disappointing people is my central trauma,” he explained. “I hate when I let people down. It hurts me psychologically and emotionally to know I didn’t live up to people’s image and impression of me. I am deeply remorseful and I’m trying to be remorseful without being ashamed of myself. I’m human. And I made a mistake. And I’m trying not to think of myself as a piece of s***.”

“So I would say to those people, I know it was confusing,” Smith added. “I know it was shocking. But I promise you, I am deeply devoted and committed to putting light and love and joy into the world and you know, if you hang on a promise we’ll be able to be friends again.”

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Credit: Official YouTube Channel Of Will Smith