Will Smith’s night at the 2022 Oscars was one to remember. The 53-year-old actor lost his cool when comedian Chris Rock made a joke about his wife of over 20 years, Jada Pinkett Smith. Rock teased Jada about her hair loss which is a result of her suffering from alopecia; it's unclear if Rock was aware of this.
This quickly irritated the actress which in turn, rubbed off on her husband. He made his way to the stage where he slapped the comedian in the face before walking back to his seat and yelling out, “Leave my wife’s name out your motherf*****g mouth.”
After the chaos, Smith won his first-ever Academy Award. He received the “Best Actor in a Leading Role” Oscar for his part in King Richard, a film dedicated to the life of the father of Venus and Serena Williams.
Once it was announced that he was the winner, he and his wife touched their foreheads together and shared a kiss before he went to receive his award.
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While giving his acceptance speech, Will shed a few tears.
Seemingly addressing the shocking incident, he said, “I know to do what we do, you’ve got to be able to take abuse. You’ve got to be able to have people talk crazy about you. In this business, you’ve got to be able to have people disrespecting you. You’ve got to smile and you’ve got to pretend like that’s okay.”
Throughout his deliverance, he paused several times to get his words together. After one of those moments, Smith decided to share some wise words that actor Denzel Washington had given him just moments before, “At your highest moment, be careful, that’s when the devil comes for you.”
He also went on to compare himself to Richard Williams, whom he portrayed in the film, saying, “Art imitates life, I look like the crazy father.” Continuing off that, he claimed, “Love makes you do some crazy things.”
Further on, he apologized to the academy and his fellow nominees– but Chris Rock was not included in that list. Wrapping up his address, he joked, “I hope the academy invites me back,” before exiting the stage.
Despite being left out of the acceptance, rapper Diddy claims the two made up and are on good terms. “It’s all love. They’re brothers,” he told Page Six.
What are your thoughts on the situation? Watch the entire speech below.