Chris Rock didn’t press charges when Will Smith slapped him onstage at the 94th Academy Awards ceremony, but if he had, the Los Angeles police were prepared to arrest Smith on battery charges.
The producer of the Oscars event, Will Packer, discussed the immediate behind-the-scenes reaction to the slap in an interview with Good Morning America, as reported by THR. In a preview of the interview, Packer explains, “They were saying, you know, ‘This is battery,’ was the word they use in that moment… ‘We’re prepared to get him right now. You can press charges. We can arrest him.'”
Packer, who said that he didn’t speak to Smith directly that night, revealed that Rock wasn’t interested in pressing charges: “They were laying out the options, and as they were talking, Chris was being very dismissive of those options. He was like, No, I’m fine.’ He was like, ‘No, no, no.’ Even to the point where I said, ‘Rock, let them finish.'”
During the ceremony on Sunday, March 27, Smith reacted to a joke that event host Rock made about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Rock referenced Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, which is a result of her struggle with alopecia. Smith rushed onto the stage and struck Rock across the face before returning to his seat and then twice shouting, “Keep my wife’s name out your fucking mouth!” The entirety of the incident was filmed as part of the live event. Smith remained for the duration of the ceremony and later was awarded the Oscar for Best Actor for his performance in King Richard, and made an emotional but vague apology during his acceptance speech.
Smith issued another public apology, this time naming Rock directly, on social media the next day. There have been conflicting reports about whether he was asked to leave the Oscars after slapping Rock, but the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences recently announced plans to begin disciplinary proceedings for violating the Academy’s Standards of Conduct.
A number of different Hollywood celebrities have expressed thoughts about Rock’s and Smith’s actions. Janet Hubert — who played Aunt Viv on Fresh Prince of Bel-Air — supported her former co-star Smith, but actor Jim Carrey condemned the slap, saying it “sickened” him. Harry Potter‘s Daniel Radcliffe, however, said only that he’s “just so already dramatically bored of hearing people’s opinions about it that I just don’t want to be another opinion adding to it.”
Good Morning America’s full interview with Packer will air on Friday.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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