3 weeks ago
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Chris Rock is getting candid about how he really feels about the Oscars, revealing he will only make a future appearance on one condition.
The 61-year-old star was last seen at the 94th Academy Awards in 2022 when he was slapped on stage by Will Smith while presenting the award for Best Documentary Feature.
The strike followed Rock's joke about Smith's wife Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head, which was due to alopecia, a medical condition that causes hair loss.
The infamous incident led to Smith, who went on to win the Best Actor award that same night, being banned from attending the Academy Awards for 10 years.
Rock has shied away from addressing the controversy and in a new interview he explained that it's frustrating how the moment has overshadowed a lot of his work ever since.
'I wish nothing would have happened,' Rock, who is promoting his new film Misty Green, told Variety. 'And also, I don't want to say anything that takes any attention away from Rosalind [Green] and how good she is in this movie.'
Chris Rock is revealing the only reason he'd return to the Oscars after he was slapped on stage in 2022
Rock directed the motion picture, with Anna Kendrick, Adam Driver, Topher Grace and Daniel Kaluuya starring.
Misty Green tells the story of a talented actress whose career has stalled and who fights for her second act.
Rock went on that in the grand scheme of things, the world is still talking about one relatively insignificant moment that happened to him.
'It's a crazy world,' he continued. 'We walk by homeless people. There's all sorts of s**t going on right now. Me having a bad day is not the biggest — it's not that important.'
Prior to the slap, Rock had quite the history with the Oscars and even hosted in 2005 and 2016.
Asked whether he'd been approached to host a future Academy Awards, the comedian deflected.
'When people answer those questions, they're being disrespectful to the people that got the gig,' he said. 'They have great hosts. Conan O'Brien is amazing. Nikki Glaser is amazing on the Golden Globes. I'm not going to say never, but my time might have passed, honestly.'
Rock went on: 'I'm not getting nominated. The only way I'll go back is if I'm nominated, and I'm not getting nominated. And that's OK.
'We'll deal with that if it happens. Like, let's manage expectations.'
During the Oscars incident, Rock said: 'Jada, I love you. G.I. Jane 2, can't wait to see it!'
Will Smith has since apologized for slapping Rock after he made the tasteless joke about his wife
It comes just weeks after Smith's co-star defended him for slapping Rock.
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor told The Daily Beast's Obsessed podcast in August: 'I think that, you know, this idea that First Amendment rights should protect everybody? I don't think it should necessarily protect a**holes. I don't. I don't. I really don't, especially if you're causing harm.'
Ellis-Taylor was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category for her role as Richard's wife, Oracene 'Brandy' Price – but lost out to Ariana DeBose, who played Anita in West Side Story.
During the Oscars incident, Rock said: 'Jada, I love you. G.I. Jane 2, can't wait to see it!'
Footage showed Pinkett Smith looking unamused and visibly rolling her eyes. Her reaction prompted her husband to lash out at the comedian.
After being slapped, Rock told the shocked audience and millions of viewers watching on TV: 'Wow. Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me.'
And after returning to his seat, Smith shouted at him: 'Keep my wife's name out of your f***ing mouth!'
Just minutes after his outburst, Smith was announced as the winner of the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in King Richard. He played Richard Williams, the driven father and coach who steered tennis icons Venus and Serena Williams to stardom.
The day after the incident, a remorseful Smith apologized to Rock via social media, writing: '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,' he added.
Smith has been banned from the Oscars for 10 years and voluntarily resigned from the Academy.
Rock commented on the pain he experienced a year later, telling Good Morning America: 'Anybody that says words hurt has never been punched in the face.'
English (US) ·