The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air‘s Janet Hubert came to the defense of her on-screen son, Will Smith, after his viral altercation with comedian Chris Rock during the 2022 Oscars ceremony.
As reported by Entertainment Weekly, Hubert, who played Smith’s Aunt Viv during the first three seasons of the ’90s sitcom showed her support for the actor on Instagram. “So PROUD OF YOU!” she wrote underneath a picture of Smith after he won in the Best Actor category for his role in King Richard, shortly after the televised slap. “Yes, there is only so much one can take…sometimes you have to slap back. Celebrate the win…nothing else matters. Both actions were incorrect but Chris didn’t need to go there.” Hubert concluded her post by sharing her own feelings on Rock, saying, “Met him once… it was enough for me…very mean spirited.”
The incident in question took place when Rock was presenting the award for Best Documentary during the 94th annual Academy Awards. In response to a joke made by Rock about Jade Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, Smith walked on stage and slapped the comedian in the face. While the audio afterward was censored, it was later revealed in an uncensored video that Smith had yelled at Rock to keep his wife’s name “out of his fucking mouth.” Pinkett Smith has publicly spoken about how she suffers from alopecia, a condition that causes hair to fall out from areas such as the scalp.
Hubert portrayed Vivian Banks for the first three seasons on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air before she was replaced by Daphne Maxwell Reid for Seasons 4 through 6. Hubert and Smith reconciled, however, when the two reunited for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Reunion on HBO Max in 2020, following reports that Hubert’s departure was a result of conflicts with her cast members, including Smith.
Smith has since apologized for his altercation with Rock, addressing the comedian directly in his statement. “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,” he said and then apologized to “the Academy, the producers of the show, all the attendees and everyone watching around the world.” He continued, “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.”
At the time of writing, Rock has chosen to forgo pressing assault charges with the Los Angeles Police Department against Smith. However, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has launched a formal review in response to Smith and Rock’s altercation.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
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