Will Smith Hit Chris Rock Last Night but a Fan Predicted It Back in 2016
The Oscars 2022 certainly packed a punch. There were many history-making moments for winners like Troy Kotsur and Ariana DeBose. However, the lion’s share of news coverage has centered around Will Smith. The actor took home his very first Oscar thanks to his portrayal of Richard Williams in King Richard. However, moments before, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alum shocked viewers when he stormed the Oscars stage to slap the taste out of Chris Rock’s mouth.
Will Smith slapped Chris Rock after the comedian made a joke about his wife
The slap heard ’round the world immediately followed Rock’s commentary about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. “Jada, I love ya. G.I. Jane 2, can’t wait to see ya,” the comedian stated, seemingly taking a jab at the Red Table Talk host’s appearance. Will seemed to laugh off the comment at first, but then took the stage and slapped Rock across the face. “Oh wow,” Rock reacted. “Will Smith just smacked the s*** out of me.”
How did Rock react to getting slapped on stage at the Oscars 2022?
Naturally, viewers and audience members were shocked and confused. At first, it appeared as if the moment could’ve been staged. However, that speculation went out the window after Will’s remarks. “Keep my wife’s name out your f****** mouth!” the Seven Pounds actor yelled from his seat. “Wow, dude, it was a G.I. Jane joke,” Rock responded. “Keep my wife’s name out your f****** mouth!” Will reiterated.
“I’m going to, OK” Rock shared, seemingly trying to diffuse the situation. “That was the … greatest night in the history of television,” he shared before moving on. Of course, the situation dominated Oscars 2022 conversations on social media. Many people on Twitter speculated about why Smith had such an intense reaction. As Jada has been open about her autoimmune disorder, alopecia, which causes hair loss, many felt that Rock’s joke was in poor taste.
The ‘Good Hair’ star made a joke at Jada Pinkett Smith’s expense during the 2016 Oscars
But last night wasn’t the first time that Rock made a joke at Jada’s expense while on stage at the Oscars. Back in 2016, the Girls Trip star famously boycotted the Oscars to protest the fact that all 20 acting nominations that year were given to White actors. Rock was a host that year and took the opportunity to make jokes about both Will and Jada despite them not being in attendance.
“Jada said she’s not coming,” Rock stated back in 2016 “I was like, ‘Isn’t she on a TV show?’ Jada’s gonna boycott the Oscars? Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties. I wasn’t invited! Jada’s mad her husband, Will, was not nominated for Concussion. I get it. I get it. Tell the truth. I get it, I get it. You get mad, you say it’s not fair that Will was this good and didn’t get nominated, you’re right. It’s also not fair that Will was paid $20 million for Wild Wild West, OK.”
A fan on Twitter predicted Will Smith hitting Rock six years ago
Some people felt that Rock’s remarks were off-color back in 2016. In fact, one Twitter user suggested that Will would have to resort to physical violence to retaliate for the verbal jabs. “Will Smith has to punch Chris Rock in the face …. He has no choice,” Twitter user, @ja_s_on, tweeted. While Will went with a slap instead of a punch, it’s pretty wild that a fan correctly predicted the incident six years ago.
