It’s the scandal of the evening: Will Smith gives Chris Rock a resounding slap in the face live on stage at the Oscar gala. The actor is now under investigation.
Hollywood star Will Smith has apologized to comedian Chris Rock after the slapping scandal. On Instagram the day after the Oscars, he wrote: “My behavior at the Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable.” He was embarrassed by the incident. He explained how the slap happened and what his wife had to do with it: “Jokes at my expense are part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s health was too much for me to take and I reacted emotionally.”
The Oscar Academy has announced that it is investigating the incident. What consequences this has for Will Smith is still unclear.
Oscars 2022 / What happened
Chris Rock took the stage and gave the speech before the Best Documentary Award. The actor, director and comedian has joked and teased about various actor couples, including Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith. “GI Jane 2 – I can’t wait to see this,” says Chris Rock, referencing the film “G.I. Jane” on. In it, Demi Moore shaves her head as a soldier.
Will Smith slaps Chris Rock in the face during the Oscars
Will Smith laughed at first, but then he got up from his seat. He ran to the stage and slapped his colleague in the face. He then returned to his seat and yelled twice loudly in Rock’s direction: “Keep my wife’s name out of your damn mouth!” In doing so, he twice used the word “fucking”, which was frowned upon on US television and which in the US broadcast began with a beep was drowned out. But why was Will Smith so freaked out? The background could be that his wife Jada Pinkett suffers from an illness that causes her hair to fall out. She reported about it on Instagram.
Slap in the face: scandal at the Oscars 2022 or was it agreed?
Rock seemed surprised after the incident, but quickly recovered and quipped, “That was the greatest night in television history.” But whether it was an actual outburst by Will Smith or a planned scene was initially completely unclear.
Will Smith won best actor shortly after being slapped
A short time later, Smith returned to the stage – this time to pick up the Oscar for best actor for his role in the movie “King Richard”. Smith plays the father of tennis players Serena and Venus Williams. When he picked up the prize, he tearfully apologized for the incident – which suggests that the slap was not prearranged.
Oscar for Best Actress for Jessica Chastain
Actress Jessica Chastain won the Oscar for Best Actress for The Eyes Of Tammy Faye. Chastain beat Olivia Colman, Penelope Cruz, Nicole Kidman and Kristen Stewart to win her first Oscar.
Oscar for best soundtrack goes to Hans Zimmer
German-born composer Hans Zimmer has won an Oscar. The 64-year-old was honored for the film music for the science fiction epic “Dune”. The Academy has previously written on Twitter.
For Zimmer, who has lived in the USA for a long time, it is already the second Oscar. In the 1990s he had already received an award for the music to the Disney cartoon film “The Lion King”.
Gerd Nefzer wins Oscar for “Visual Effects” in “Dune”
But Zimmer is not the only German who can take home one of the coveted prizes. Gerd Nefzer also won the Oscar in the Visual Effects category with “Dune”. The sci-fi epic received the most awards overall. The film was awarded, among other things, for the best film music and the best visual effects.
Gerd Nefzer was on 27.03. guest at Talk with Thees and told more about his work there:
“Coda” wins Oscar for best picture
The tragic comedy “Coda” won the Oscar for best picture. Director Siân Heder tells the story of a girl who grows up in a deaf fisherman’s family. The film won a total of three awards, as the US Film Academy announced on Monday night. This is the first time a film from a streaming service has won the Oscar in this category – the film is being shown on Apple TV+.
Jane Campion’s western The Power of the Dog, which had entered the race as a favorite with twelve nominations, ultimately won only one award for best director.
“Drive my Car” wins Oscar for best international film
The Japanese drama “Drive My Car” by director Ryusuke Hamaguchi has won the Oscar for best international film. The three-hour film beat Denmark’s Flee, Italy’s The Hand of God, Bhutan’s Lunana: Happiness is in the Himalayas and Norway’s The Worst Man Alive at Sunday’s Oscars ceremony. The German candidate for the foreign Oscar, “I am your human being”, did not make it into the final selection.
Oscars 2022: minute’s silence for Ukraine
A minute’s silence was held for Ukraine at the gala at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood shortly after the awarding of the Oscars. A message on the stage screen called for showing “our support for the people of Ukraine” who are victims of an “invasion”. “We ask you to help Ukraine in any way you can,” it said.
Even before the ceremony began, several stars appeared on the red carpet with blue ribbons that read #WithRefugees (With Refugees). These are intended as a sign of solidarity with refugees from Ukraine and other crisis areas. Actors Jamie Lee Curtis and Samuel L. Jackson, among others, were photographed with such loops.
Sean Penn calls for a boycott of the gala – Selenskyj was not connected
Actor Sean Penn had called for a boycott of the Oscar gala if Ukrainian President Zelenskyy was not there. He should be switched live. And Penn threatened further consequences: He then wanted to “melt down” his Oscar statues. According to initial information from the agencies, however, President Selenskyj was not switched on in the Dolby Theater.
Penn is a two-time Oscar winner himself, but criticized the organizers even before the most important film awards were presented. In an interview with CNN, Penn said Zelensky’s appearance on the show in front of an audience of millions would be a great opportunity to speak. However, Penn fears that the film academy has not pursued this further. In that case, it would be “the most shameless moment in Hollywood history.”
Penn is currently in Poland supporting with his
Aid organization Core Ukrainian refugees. He has also met Zelenskyj several times. The actor and director is working on a documentary about the Ukraine war.
