The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued Will Smith a 10 year ban from attending the Oscars and other related events after he slapped comedian Chris Rock during this year’s award show.
“The 94th Oscars were meant to be a celebration of the many individuals in our community who did incredible work this past year, however, those moments were overshadowed by the unacceptable and harmful behavior we saw Mr. Smith exhibit on stage,” the Academy said in a statement on Friday.
INSIDE SOURCES SAY ACADEMY NEVER ASKED WILL SMITH TO LEAVE OSCARS: REPORT
The Academy apologized for failing to “adequately address the situation in the room” during the awards show on March 27. “This was an opportunity for us to set an example for our guests, viewers and our Academy family around the world, and we fell short — unprepared for the unprecedented,” the statement added.
“We want to express our deep gratitude to Mr. Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances. We also want to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their poise and grace during our telecast,” the Academy said.
“I accept and respect the Academy’s decision,” Smith said in a brief statement.
The Academy bans Will Smith from attending the Oscars and any other Academy events for 10 years: pic.twitter.com/hoIuHnVpjD
— Clarissa-Jan Lim (@clarissajanlim) April 8, 2022
Smith slapped Rock onstage during the Oscars award show on March 27 after the comedian made a joke about the bald-headed look of his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who has alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss.
Smith later won Best Actor for his role in King Richard, which tells the story of the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams. During his acceptance speech, Smith offered an apology to the academy and his “fellow nominees” but did not mention Rock. Smith later released a statement apologizing to Rock by name.
The actor resigned from the Academy on April 1, which the board of governors cited as a reason to speed up its review of the matter.
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Rock, who shook off the slap and continued hosting the awards show, did not file a police report. In the days that followed, Rock said he was “still kind of processing what happened,” adding that at some point in the future he will “talk about it.”
