Academy, Celebs React To Will Smith’s Chris Rock Slap At Oscars: “It’s A Very Bad Practice To Walk Up On Stage And Physically Assault A Comedian”

Thanks to Will Smith, the 94th Annual Academy Awards will now be forever known as the one where he smacked Chris Rock on stage.

Responding to the incident, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Oscars’ organisers, said in a statement: “The Academy does not condone violence of any form. Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.”

Pinkett Smith has previously opened up about her struggles with alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss. The joke didn’t go down well with Smith who walked up to Rock and slapped him, before returning to his seat and shouted, “Keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth!”

“Oh Wow. Will Smith just smacked the s***t out of me,” a stunned Rock quipped, before continuing to present the award. “That was, er, the greatest night in the history of television,” he added.

Meanwhile, Variety reported that Rock has “declined to file a police report” with the Los Angele Police Department following his altercation with Smith.

A statement from the Los Angeles Police Department reads (per Variety): “LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program. The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”

Smith’s slap drew a flood of social media reactions, mainly condemnations from comedians who are concerned with people resorting to violence when they are offended by the material.

Tweeted Kathy Griffin: “ “Let me tell you something, it’s a very bad practice to walk up on stage and physically assault a comedian.”

Veteran producer Marshall Herskovitz believes Smith should answer for his action. “I call upon the Academy, of which I am a member, to take disciplinary action against Will Smith. He disgraced our entire community tonight.”

Smith's son, Jaden, however, seemed to approve of his father's outburst. He tweeted, "That's How We Do It." (Is it just us or do we a sense an Oprah Winfrey special where Smith appears to explain his side of the story?)

Others like Trevor Noah wondered if the clash was staged. "That wasn't scripted?" he tweeted. Elsewhere, Pinkett-Smith's Girls Trip co-star Tiffany Haddish is batting for Team Will.

"When I saw a Black man stand up for his wife. That meant so much to me," Haddish, 42, told People. "As a woman, who has been unprotected, for someone to say like, 'Keep my wife's name out your mouth, leave my wife alone,' that's what your husband is supposed to do, right? Protect you. And that meant the world to me.

She continued: "And maybe the world might not like how it went down, but for me, it was the most beautiful thing I ever seen because it made me believe that there are still men out there that love and care about their women, their wives."

Here are some of the reactions circulating online:

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