‘I was out of line …’ Will Smith publicly apologises to Chris Rock for slapping him at the Oscars

Will Smith’s angry outburst at the Oscars has cast a shadow over his best actor win, and the star seems to be regretting his ‘emotional reaction’ not only during his award acceptance speech but also after returning home.

A day after the shocking incident of Smith slapping Chris Rock on Oscars stage for cracking a joke about his wife, the memes and opinions surrounding it is only growing in volume. In fact, thanks to social media, it has taken a life of its own with the slapping clip going viral. This has not only prompted the Academy to launch a formal investigation into the altercation but also made Smith issue another apology.


Although the actor had previously said sorry to Rock as well as the Academy in his award acceptance speech, he again took to his Instagram account after the award show and said that he condemns violence in all of its forms, as it is poisonous and destructive.

The 53-year-old posted an official statement on his Instagram feed which said, “ My behavior at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally…I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”

The ‘Men In Black’ actor again took the opportunity to express his regrets to the Academy, the producers of the show, all the attendees and everyone watching the event live, around the world.


Last but definitely not the least, Smith also asked Williams family’s and his ‘King Richard’ family’s forgiveness. “I would like to apologize to the Williams Family and my ‘King Richard’ Family. I deeply regret that my behavior has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us. I am a work in progress,” the actor concluded.

For those of you who could by some miracle evade the Will Smith-Chris Rock altercation news, here are the details. Yesterday, when Chris Rock took the stage to introduce the Best Documentary feature, he being a comedian, cracked a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett-Smith’s baldness, and compared her to ‘G.I. Jane’. Smith. However, Smith did not take the joke too well.

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He rushed onto the stage, and lodged two tight slaps on Chris Rock’s face, as a panicked audience watched in horror, wondering whether the moment was scripted or if Smith really meant it. The revelation that Smith was actually angry came when the ‘King Richard’ actor yelled at the top of his lungs, and said, “Keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth.”

However, after the moment of misconduct, Smith quickly understood the gravity of his misconduct and when he returned on stage to collect his Best Actor trophy for his performance in ‘King Richard’ the actor got emotional and with tears rolling down his eyes said sorry to the Academy, as well Rock.

“ In this business, you gotta be able to have people disrespecting you and you gotta smile and you gotta pretend like that's OK. But Richard Williams, and what I loved, thank you D. Denzel (Washington) said to me a few minutes ago, he said, 'At your highest moment, be careful. That's when the devil comes for you,'" said the actor.

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The actor further added that he wanted to apologize to the Academy and all his fellow nominees. “This is a beautiful moment and I'm not crying for winning an award. It's not about winning an award for me…I'm hoping the Academy invites me back. Thank you,” he concluded.

The Academy is currently investigating the matter.