Will Smith has addressed the “horrific night” of his now infamous Oscars slap during his first late-night US talk show appearance since the incident. The Hollywood star said his “bottled rage” contributed to the slap, while admitting that did not justify his actions.
He appeared on Monday’s episode of The Daily Show with Trevor Noah to promote his upcoming film, Emancipation. Smith stormed the stage during the 94th Academy Awards ceremony in March and slapped host Chris Rock after a joke he made about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith.
Moments later he returned to the stage after winning the best actor Oscar for his role in the biopic King Richard, about the father of Venus and Serena Williams. He later apologised to Rock and the Academy but was banned from attending any Academy events or progammes for 10 years.
Smith told Noah that he was “going through something that night” but admitted his “bottled up” rage did not justify his behaviour. He said: “That was a horrific night, as you can imagine.
“There’s many nuances and complexities to it. But at the end of the day, I just lost it. I guess what I would say is that you just never know what somebody’s going through. I was going through something that night, you know?
Discover, learn, grow. We are Curiously. Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
“Not that that justifies my behaviour at all. I understand how shocking that was for people… I was gone.
“That was a rage that had been bottled for a really long time.”
Smith resigned from the Academy following the incident, and later apologised to Rock via a post on Instagram, saying: “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.”
Emancipation marks Smith’s return to the big-screen since the incident and is directed by Antoine Fuqwa. The actor said the idea that the production would be “tainted” by his actions and not gain the recognition it deserved at the upcoming awards season was “killing me dead”.
READ MORE:
- Struggling neighbours in Salford's 'biggest eyesore' face 'scandalous' rent hike - on Christmas Eve
- Police release CCTV footage after three attempted kidnappings that saw schoolgirls targeted
- How the Devil Dog Mobster's reign of terror ended in a hail of bullets at the wheel of his £50k Mercedes
- Loan sharks and drug dealer caught in a dead end among Greater Manchester criminals waking up behind bars
- Village rocked by murder of devoted dad found shot and attacked with acid in quiet street
