Janet Yang, the Academy’s president, has stated that the Academy will now respond differently to Will Smith slapping comedian Chris Rock at the Oscars last year.
If a similar incident occurs this year, the Academy ‘would respond more swiftly in removing the person,’ according to the American film producer, ahead of the 95th Academy Awards ceremony on Monday, March 13th.
She confirmed that the Academy had a “team of people, we have security” on hand to defuse any problems this year, and she supported the decision to bar Smith from the ceremony for the next ten years.
‘The board of governors made a decision, and we are going to stick to that decision,’ she said.
After attacking Rock on stage, the Academy was heavily chastised for allowing Will Smith to remain in the audience and accept the award.
During the 94th Academy Awards on Monday, March 27, 2022, Will Smith walked up to the stage and slapped Chris Rock.
Rock took the stage to present the Best Documentary Feature Film award.
He joked with the audience before the presentation that Smith’s wife Jada looked like ‘G.I. Jane’ because of her bald head, despite revealing that she suffers from alopecia – hair loss.
Smith appeared to laugh at the joke at first. The camera then captured the moment he stormed onto the stage and slapped Rock in the face.
‘Wow, Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me,’ Rock said, rubbing his cheek.
Smith sat back down and yelled, ‘Keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth!’
He later won the award for Best Actor. Smith apologized to the Academy and the other nominees, saying that “love makes you do crazy things.”
Rock stated that he would not file charges.
Soon after, there were calls for Smith’s honor to be revoked. He kept the award, but he was barred from attending the Oscars and other Academy-hosted events for the next ten years.
