Chris Rock Apologized To Wanda Sykes After Will Smith's Oscars Slap
Oscars co-host Wanda Sykes says Chris Rock apologized to her following Sunday's ceremony that saw Will Smith slap him across the face. Rock and Sykes have a long history reaching back to The Chris Rock Show, where Sykes won an Emmy for her work as a writer. The two would also work on other projects, like the films Down to Earth and Pootie Tang, with the comedians still being friends all these years later.
The 94th Academy Awards took place on Sunday with three hosts: Regina Hall, Amy Schumer, and Sykes. With the ceremony well underway, Rock took to the stage to present the award for Best Documentary when he made a joke about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Moments later, Smith was on stage, making his way toward Rock, only to deliver a violent slap across Rock's face. Smith then told him to "Keep my wife's name out your f***ing mouth!" Rock admirably kept the show rolling with attendees still in shock over the incident, only for Smith to win a Best Actor Oscar a few minutes later.
In an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Sykes discusses the now-infamous Smith Oscars slap. Following her initial shock, Sykes says she "felt so awful for my friend Chris," before calling the incident "sickening." She goes on to criticize the movie star's actions before mentioning that Rock approached her at an afterparty to apologize. He told her that the whole situation would now take away from what should've been her night to shine with her fellow co-hosts. Sykes then adds that he apologized"because that's who Chris is." Check out Sykes' comments below:
I hope he doesn’t mind me saying this, but I saw Chris at [Guy Oseary’s after party] 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?’ 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.' Because that’s who Chris is.
Rock chose not to file a police report following the slap, and Smith has since apologized to him, yet many are still affected by the incident. Sykes' co-host Schumer called the Smith Oscars slap traumatizing, and other celebrities such as Jim Carrey and Zoë Kravitz have spoken out against Smith's actions. Many comedians have also supported Rock's right to tell the joke, which centered on Pinkett Smith's shaved head, while others have said it was in poor taste, due to her struggles with alopecia.
Smith may also be facing repercussions for the Oscars slap from the Academy's Board of Governors, who recently released a statement about Sunday night's proceedings. In the statement, it was said that Smith may face "suspension, expulsion or other sanctions permitted," before also adding that the actor was asked to leave following the incident, which he refused to do. Smith's fate will be decided during an April 18 board meeting, with many like Sykes left to continue processing the event until then.
Source: The Ellen DeGeneres Show