Academy Awards 2023 host Jimmy Kimmel has outlined what he will do if the infamous slapping incident were to be repeated this year.
During last year’s ceremony, Will Smith walked on stage and hit presenter Chris Rock across the face, before swearing at him on live TV, after the comedian made a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
The controversial moment resulted in Smith being banned from Academy events for 10 years, and saw the Oscars put in place new crisis measures for this year’s ceremony.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, late night talk show host Kimmel was asked what he would do if there was “another slap”.
“You mean, if somebody comes up on the stage and slaps me? Well, I size them up, and, if I’m bigger than they are, I beat the s*** out of them on television,” he joked. “And if it’s the Rock, I run.”
Kimmel also revealed that he hadn’t been privvy to the inner workings of the Oscar crisis comittee, which has supposedly “run many scenarios” for potential events.
Asked what these scanarios entailed, Kimmel responded: “I wish I knew. I’ve not been involved in that. I guess I’m the last thing they’re worried about.”
“I feel like I should at least know what was discussed so I know what I should fear when I walk onstage,” he quipped. “But, really, I suspect it mostly has to do with UFOs.”
The presenter also reflected on having hosted the Oscars during one of its biggest previous controversies – when La La Land was incorrectly announced as the winner of Best Picture over Moonlight in 2017.
“Yeah, we got knocked down the list [after the slap],” Kimmel said. “It’s disappointing in a lot of ways. If you’re gonna be part of a f***up, it might as well be the biggest f***up ever.
“Being part of the second-biggest f***up doesn’t carry as much cachet.”
This year’s Oscars ceremony takes place on Sunday 12 March.
