Unseen footage has emerged showing Jada Pinkett Smith's reaction when husband Will slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars. Will Smith, 53, leapt on stage at the glitzy ceremony on Sunday (March 27) and slapped Rock who'd made a joke about Jada's shaved head.
The Mirror Online reports that, while the incident has been seen millions of times across social media, a new clip on Twitter has shown Jada's surprised reaction for the first time. According to the Mirror, the footage was taken behind Will and Jada's front row table.
And the video starts as Will returned from the stage after the high-profile incident. As the rest of the audience is stunned into silence following the Men In Black star’s angry outburst, The Matrix actress can be seen laughing.
Read more: Chris Rock reportedly made joke backstage after Will Smith slap
She appears to lean forward and laugh as Chris responded to the assault, as he told the Hollywood A-listers watching: “Will Smith just smacked the **** out of me”. Jada continued to watch the comedian as husband Will sat back down in his seat, and laughed for a second time as Chris said it was “the greatest night in the history of television”.
The star also kept a dignified silence as Will shouted repeatedly to the comedian on stage: “Keep my wife's name out of your ******* mouth”. It’s not know who captured the footage of Jada’s reaction, or who subsequently shared the clip on social media.
During his acceptance speech after winning Best Actor at the Oscars, Will apologised to his fellow nominees and the Academy as he took to the stage just minutes after assaulting Chris. He later issued another grovelling apology, this time directed toward the comedian, as he regretted his violent outburst.
“I would like to publicly apologise to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness," he said. While Chris has yet to issue any statement regarding the incident, Jada has broken her silence on the controversial incident, and shared a brief post on Instagram which read: “This is a season for healing and I'm here for it.”
