When I heard Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars, I thought it might be a publicity stunt, but when I watched it, it became clear it was a violent slap of anger.
As a role model and high profile actor, Will Smith should apologise no matter how angry and insensitive Chris Rock might have behaved. We do not live in a society that encourages a physical response which involves bodily harm.
Will Smith is accomplished. I like his movies. It is disappointing to see that he has done this. He is human and allowed to make mistakes, but the only correct course of action now is to admit he was wrong.
In his acceptance speech for Best Actor,Will Smith said, 'In this time in my life, in this moment, I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do and be in this world,'
Smith said, 'I'm being called on in my life to love people and to protect people and to be a river to my people.'
This sounds like he is making excuses for his actions. He is not owning up to his poor judgement.
He further adds, 'I know to do what we do you gotta be able to take abuse; you gotta be able to have people talk crazy about you. In this business you gotta be able to have people disrespecting you, and you gotta smile and pretend like that's okay.'
His only remorse was 'I want to apologize to the Academy. I want to apologize to all my fellow nominees.'
Will Smith must say that violence was not appropriate. He should apologise to Chris Rock. I don't find Chris Rock funny but he should not have been assaulted.
He talks about respect and being disrespected. Humour is subjective and often does go too far. In the heat of the moment, we can want to lash out, but we don't. If we feel threatened or our loved ones are facing imminent danger, it is understandable then to take action. Clearly in that circumstance, words are not enough.
Movies about vengeance may speak to us and we can understand how characters might be driven to unimagineable acts, yet we know in real life we do not do this. This is entertainment. We do not live in imaginary worlds. We rely on justice, laws and the mechanisms of our democracy.
In this situation, Will Smith could have gone on to the stage and said to Chris Rock that it was not cool and that he did not want that kind of joke made about his wife.
It does seem he regretted it. I feel horrified that Chris Rock was subjected to this. It makes Will Smith look like a bully.
When you look at Will Smith's Instagram post with the caption 'all dressed up to choose chaos,' the act tough be tough music and tone of the video, it does not look good.
Will Smith's Instagram - choose chaos post
It's unclear whether this post was before or after the slap. It seems like a complete lack of awareness if the post was made after the slap and he is trying to laugh his actions off as a joke.
The Will Smith brand has tried to shine after a period of absence from the spotlight. Stunts like this, whether delibrate or unintentional, are not funny, especially to victims of violence. Domestic abuse is a huge problem today.
I wonder whether legal action might not be taken even without Chris Rock filing assault charges. Actions have consequences. The message must be that you cannot hit someone in this circumstance. I'm not saying Will Smith should be penalised or arrested. I just wonder how this will be handled as a law and order issue. Laws exist to protect us. If they are not enforced and public examples are not made, it becomes a slippery slope.
After the events of the last few weeks in Ukraine, when people have had to flee their homes and they fear for their lives, after the stories of violence, it makes a mockery of our values to say that violence is fine.
In light of Weinstein, Hollywood is under scrutiny for tolerating bad behaviour. What does it say when we applaud and award powerful men who think themselves above the rules, laws and decency. If they can so publicly behave in this way, what does this say about us all?
It is possible Will Smith's anger may stem from previous jokes, grudges and other things, which made him snap. He may be in denial or too arrogant to see himself as anything other than a victim.
Many armchair critics have also noted how this story might have been different if Will Smith slapped a female comedian, or if a woman had slapped Chris Rock, or if their skin colours had been different. Some people suggest it wasn't a hard slap or that it was just a slap. Others dismiss it as a stunt by actors. This incident raise many issues, but at the heart of it, we must talk about violence and how we deal with it.
The video at the top of this news story shows the few minutes leading up to and after the slap. Make up your own mind about whether the slap is violent and if it is acceptable in these circumstances.
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Update: since the initial publication of this blog post, Will Smith's latest Instagram post acknowledges that violence is unacceptable. He has also apologised to Chris Rock and people watching around the world.
I'm glad that Will Smith is trying to do the right thing. Perhaps it is just public relations stepping in. Whatever the case may be, I hope that the Will Smith v Chris Rock slap at the 2022 Oscars does not embolden others to be violent or provide justification for bad behaviour.
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