Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars.
Jada Pinkett Smith recently opened up about her husband Will Smith's shocking 2022 Oscars moment when he slapped actor-comedian Chris Rock on stage. Mr Smith hit Mr Rock during the Academy Awards ceremony in March 2022, after the comedian joked about Ms Pinkett Smith's alopecia, which causes bald spots and hair loss. Following the incident, Mr Smith was banned from attending the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences events - including the Oscars - for 10 years. He has since apologised multiple times for his actions, including apologies to Mr Rock.
Now, in an interview with People Magazine, Ms Pinkett Smith revealed that she initially thought the moment her husband hit Mr Rock at the Academy Awards was a pre-planned skit. “I thought, ‘This is a skit',” she told the outlet while discussing her new book ‘Worthy'.
“I was like, 'There's no way that Will hit him.' It wasn't until Will started to walk back to his chair that I even realized it wasn't a skit,” Ms Pinkett Smith added.
Further, the 52-year-old actress revealed the first words she said to her husband when they were alone following the event. “Are you okay?” she asked Mr Smith. She also said of her husband: "I'm going to be by his side but also allow him to have to figure this out for himself."
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Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith have been married since 1997. The couple have two children together - Jaden, 25 and Willow, 22.
In the same interview, Ms Pinkett Smith also got candid about her marriage with the ‘King Richard' star, revealing that they had been separated for six years. She revealed that they have been living “completely separate lives” and did not announce this earlier since they were “not ready” yet. She told the outlet that they were “exhausted with trying” by the time they parted ways.
The American actress also revealed in the interview that Chris Rock asked her out on a date at one point of time. “I think every summer all the reports would come out that me and Will were getting a divorce. And this particular summer, Chris, he thought that we were getting a divorce. So he called me and basically he was like, ‘I'd love to take you out.' And I was like, ‘What do you mean?' He was like, ‘Well, aren't you and Will getting a divorce?' I was like, ‘No. Chris, those are just rumours.' He was appalled. And he profusely apologized and that was that,” she told the magazine.