At the 2022 Oscar's ceremony on Sunday, March 27 2022, Chris Rock made an offensive comment about Will Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, saying "Jada, I love ya. G. I. Jane 2, can't wait to see it" in reference to her shaved head. At first, this seems to get a laugh from the audience, but then we see Will Smith has left his seat and is approaching Rock on stage. Having been now referred to as "The Slap Heard 'Round the World," everyone is talking about how Smith slapped Rock across the face, while then returning to his seat and yelling something at Rock about keeping his wife's name out of his ****ing mouth, which was all audibly cut out (but not visually) by ABC.
There was a twitter joke made quickly that stated that SNL was going to have a lot to work with after these Oscar's, but a part of me hopes that they do not try to use this scenario in a skit (although it is likely that the writers have already drafted something up). Social media users are split between those who support Smith and his actions, and those who are accusing him of physical assault and claiming that his actions were not appropriate.
When it comes down to deciding if his actions were appropriate or justified, we first have to look at all of the elements in the situation. Staged or not, a comedian made an insensitive joke about Jada Pinkett Smith, who is married to Will Smith (recipient of the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in King Richard). Jada was diagnosed with alopecia in 2018, and has been vocal about her struggles with not being able to grow her hair. Rock's joke about her being bald was insensitive and unnecessary, but so was Smith's physical reaction. Smith chose both a physical response as well as a verbal one, whereas they were not both needed. Had he just shouted what he did at Rock and stayed in his seat, there might not be all this attention on him. He would have conveyed his message and defended his wife. However, the social media users that are defending Smith have stated that Jada deserves to have her husband defend her when she is the victim of insensitivity, especially on live TV, and even more as she is a woman of color.
If this had been an interaction on the street in passing, would we think twice about it? If Smith had slapped Rock on a random Tuesday in response to a comment like this and the press got a picture of it, where would we lie in our judgements? We would not have seen or heard the actual joke or altercation, so we might assume that Smith is out of line. It would be blown out of proportion, and the truth would never be found. Does Smith have a higher responsibility to control his emotions and actions because he is in the spotlight as a celebrity? Or does he owe it to himself and his life partner to defend her when she is taken advantage of or made fun of in extremely insensitive ways? I do not think that we will ever agree on one or the other as an answer, but rather find ways to support and condemn both views.
If there is ever a time that we see or hear a public apology to Chris Rock from Will Smith about is actions, I do hope that he does not take back the intent behind the incident. He should be allowed to defend his wife privately or publicly, especially if at a large public event such as an awards ceremony where everyone can hear the words of the comedian that delivers such an insensitive comment.
I do also hope that we hear or see a public apology from Chris Rock, as his comment was out of line and unnecessary. Yes, he is a comedian, and they will often make jokes about unfortunate circumstances or minorities, but this was not a stand-up comedy show. Any jokes that are made by featured guests or presenters have been light-hearted or staged, and this incident was neither.
Comments