The Slap: Was It An Heroic Moment For Will Smith Or Just Toxic Masculinity On Full Display

When Will Smith decided to get up on the Oscar‘s stage and slap Chris Rock for a joke aimed at his wife, it absolutely stunned Hollywood and beyond. The global audience (including those seated at The Dolby Theatre) had no idea if it was a bit, or an actual confrontation. Now that everyone has processed what happened, various perspectives have unearthed in the cold light of day. I take a look at what happened, what it means and what’s at stake for arguably the two biggest names in entertainment.

Her eyes rolled. He laughed initially and then the audio cut out leaving all of us bewildered. It’s the 94th Academy Awards and Chris Rock as per usual does his standup schtick right before he was to announce the nominees for Best Documentary. He took a jab at Javier Bardem and his wife Penelope Cruz who also joined in the laughs. Then he moved on to Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith honing in on the latter. His joke about her clean crown making references to a possible sequel to GI Jane (the iconic film where Demi Moore, famously shaved her head for the role) immediately garnered a hard eye roll from Ms. Smith. She has Alopecia, an auto-immune disorder which causes hair to fall out and Jada Pinkett-Smith has been very open about her journey and the struggles to embrace her baldness, a challenge for mere mortals, but when you are constantly being held up to Hollywood’s beauty standards, it’s a long and hard fight. Even the audience realized that it was a bad joke, something not lost on Chris who even threw up his arms recognizing that his joke fell flat. And then the whole thing went sideways, a plot twist that M. Night Shyamalan couldn’t have predicted.

Smith lept up from his seat, walked right up to the stage and slapped Chris Rock. Upon returning to his seat he yelled at Rock to “Keep my wife’s name out your f— mouth!” The audience didn’t really know what was happening. Even Lupita Nyong’o who was seated right behind Smith and pretty much became the centre of the frame, couldn’t register if this was a bit or if this really happened.

So in a nutshell an assault happened on stage. And everyone didn’t know what the hell was going on.

VIA JAPANESE TELEVISION: The uncensored exchange between Will Smith and Chris Rock pic.twitter.com/j0Z184ZyXa

— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) March 28, 2022

Chris Rock’s History With Will & Jada

Chris Rock who doesn’t shy away from roasting anyone on his radar has gone after Will & Jada before. It was awards season in 2016, when she made the stance that she would be boycotting the Oscars (that Chris Rock was set to host) because of the lack of diversity in their nominees, an obvious point that was picked up by media and activists alike creating the #OscarsSoWhite movement. Eventhough Will Smith wasn’t nominated for his film Concussion, her reaction of boycotting an awards ceremony which she would have no part of anyways, caught Chris Rock’s eye and comedic ire. And he included both Will and Jada (among other stars who were boycotting the awards) in his opening monologue.

(Apparently word on the street is that Will Smith was still mad about it. Which has been speculated as the reason for his outburst on Sunday night.)

The Oscars Has Always Been Rife With Roasting 

Whether it’s the opening monologue, or during a presentation in the middle of the ceremony, comedians have always taken this night of honours as an opportunity to flex their roasting muscles. We’ve seen it all before, whether it’s good-natured ribbing from the iconic host-of-all-hosts, Billy Crystal or sometimes tone deaf delivery of Jimmy Kimmel, celeb roasting is honoured and expected. And then there’s THAT guy.

Ricky Gervais.

Gervais was masterful at reflecting the mirror back to the Hollywood elite. Tearing apart the glitz and glam of the evening by pointing out all the hypocrosies that lied beneath. He expertly played the outsider looking into the guilded bubble that’s Hollywood. Even he was one the first to call out Harvey Weinstein (which led to a chorus of boos from the audience). Of course in hindsight even that reaction is cringeworthy.

So did someone storm the stage and give him a punch in the gut? Of course not. I’m sure everyone wanted to, but logic (and a bit of decency) would dictate that you can’t just do that on Hollywood’s biggest night (or any other night for that matter). You do what usually is done, save it for backstage, or at one of the after parties and rake him through the coals. Or better yet, create a tersely worded letter and post it across social.

Was The Joke That Bad?

In order to answer that question, the mind of the comedian needs to be understood. They are simply built different. Comedians have a gifted knack to be able to find a thread of comedy even in the most darkest times. I’ll never forget what Steve Harvey said during his interview with Jerry Seinfeld on the Netflix series “Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee” — that when tragedy strikes, comedians are writing up jokes that very night. So when the answer to the question “can we laugh now?” is answered with a resounding “yes”, these ladies and gentlemen have their jokes primed and ready for the accepting audience who is now ready to let out a chorkle or too.

That’s at the comedy clubs. What about at The Academy Awards? Sometimes that sharpened comedic edge needs to be dulled a bit in order for the joke to land. Why? Because you aren’t looking at a comedy club audience, a niche market who expect daggers to be thrown. The Oscars is broadcasting to a global audience, an audience which is probably made up of a majority of people who may have not darkened the doors of a comedy club, or have clicked on that Netflix special.

Now add someone suffering from an auto-immune disease to the mix, an A-lister who’s the wife of an A-lister.

So to answer that question, yes Chris Rock could and should have skipped that joke.

Was The Slap Justified?

It depends who you ask. This assault (yes, let’s call it what it is), has revealed interesting divides among society, as reflected on social.

One argument stands by Will Smith. He was defending his woman. This according to Jameela Jamil who tweeted:

Will Smith said “Not Today”. A man big enough to absolutely floor him, slapped him softly enough that Chris barely moved, because he made fun of his wife’s alopecia on a world stage. Don’t say #protectBlackwomen for two years and then only condemn Will here. Come on… pic.twitter.com/6aTfKlNynN

— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) March 28, 2022

Others have noted the irony that a comedian (Rock) who did a documentary about Black hair (Good Hair which came out in 2009) insults a Black woman who has none through no fault of her own.

There are those who accuse Jada of being too thin-skinned for not being able to take a joke. That assumption goes back to the initial reaction by Will Smith. Remember, he initially did laugh. But we didn’t see what happened between that and his approach on stage. Because the cameras cut away. So internet sleuths are speculating that Jada may have nudged Will to do something and so he did. Or maybe he processed what was actually being said and decided to act on it.

“Love Makes You Do Crazy Things”

One of the more concerning threads on social that came out of this was his use of the word “love”. Will Smith was a shoe-in for winning The Best Actor category for his role in King Richard. Therefore the scenario that he will have a chance to say his peice on the podium was a likelihood. And when it happened. right before he apologized to everyone (except Rock), he excused his violent outburst as an act of “love” and the great lengths he would go to, to defend his family. People immediately picked up on his choice of words.

Will Smith says “Love will make you do crazy things.” That’s what women are told after being assaulted. The abuser tries to justify his abuse by relating it to love. Smith’s public assault of Chris Rock should make us ask, “what does he do in private?” #CancelWillSmith #ldnont

— Megan Walker (@meggiewalk) March 28, 2022

“Love makes you do crazy things”
Will Smith, Oscars 2022

That’s the number one excuse every abuse victim hears. It’s what people use to justify their actions and bad behavior.#AcademyAwards2022 #domesticviolence #AcademyAwards #WillSmith pic.twitter.com/OPFkVlR5uF

— Angel (@WhyNot_RESISTS) March 28, 2022

If Wanda Sykes had made the same joke, would Will Smith slap her? And if he did, would people be defending him the way they are for slapping Chris Rock? Smith should have been tossed out on his ass – and charged with assault and battery. #IStandWithChrisRock

— Mike Patrick (@MikePatrick) March 28, 2022

What Will Could Have Done 

He could have ignored the joke. Maybe give him a side eye. And when he was to approach the podium (remember all the odds were for him winning), he could have rebutted the joke, showered praise on his wife’s beautiful crown and basically be the better man. But he didn’t. And now he has successfully perpetuated the trope of a Black man’s toxic masculinity.

The Academy’s Reaction

After that moment, the Oscars continued and people were left wondering, why wasn’t Will Smith escorted out? Apparently that thought did cross the producers minds. But who in their right minds would have thought that there would even be a possibility of an A-list actor, a solid contender for one of the top prizes, assaulting one of comedy’s biggest stars live on air? Sources close to the action say that the producers and respective PR people were scrambling seconds after the assault, trying to figure out a way to manage this situation on the fly. News reports that came out this morning have noted that there actually was the thought of escorting Smith out, but by the time a decision was made his category was being announced (there was no confirmation on what that decision was exactly). But feelings were strong that night. According to those who attended, there was a split between those who stood up to applaud Will Smith’s win, and those who remained seated.

Is Will Smith’s Brand In Jeopardy?

The carefully constructed image that Will has created from his days of Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air has always been a good-humoured, all around nice, respectable family man. However last night’s outburst may have put his brand in peril. An Op-Ed by Greg Braxton in LA Times put it best:

“If the 94th Academy Awards marked a personal triumph for Smith, his journey to honor Richard, Venus and Serena Williams ultimately ended in dishonor: for Smith himself, for the Williams family (members of which looked visibly uncomfortable after the night jumped the rails) and for the Black creative community the actor has come to represent.

After all, Smith delivered a gift-wrapped present to conservatives dismissive of the Black Lives Matter movement and increasingly frustrated by the battle against systemic racism, from voting rights to critical race theory. It was easy to imagine Tucker Carlson watching the awards in his pajamas, leaping up and pointing to the screen: “Look! White people aren’t hurting Black folks. It’s really Black-on-Black crime. Those people are beating up on each other.”

Smith’s heroic stature inside and outside Black culture, and his carefully constructed persona as the patriarch of a celebrity family, only intensifies the fallout. And his actions have now placed his reputation in jeopardy.”

But having said all of that, remember Mel Gibson? Hollywood is notorious for having short memories and love a redemption story.

In the end, Chris Rock wasn’t pressing charges according to the LAPD. And The Academy has opened an formal investigation into the matter, after getting some blow back by their initial muted response.

As I write this, Will Smith put this up:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith)

Finally, the saddest part is that the winners who should be relishing in the media spotlight today, have undeservedly had their moment in the sun dimmed. They are now most likely becoming a footnote in one of the most embarrassing Oscars ever. And I’m pretty sure they know who to blame.

Main Image Photo Credit: www.twitter.com