Oscars Slap Fight Aftermath

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Now that Hollywood is getting the impression that the general public isn’t joining them in support of hitting people over jokes, more developments are shaking out in the Oscar slap fight fiasco. First, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science released a tepid-at-best response to Will Smith’s actions on Oscar night:

The Academy does not condone violence of any form.

Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.

— The Academy (@TheAcademy) March 28, 2022

The next day, they had some harsher words and promised action in a new statement:

“The Academy condemns the actions of Mr. Smith at last night’s show. We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law.”

According to an US Weekly source, the wait was because they wanted to confirm the slap was real and were then too busy making sure Chris Rock was okay, but I think a safer bet is that they wanted to see which way the wind was blowing before they took action against one of the last remaining movie stars, fading though he may be. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Academy’s Board of Governors will meet tomorrow night, Wednesday, to discuss any disciplinary action. THR seems to think Smith may be temporarily suspended from the Academy, but they doubt he’ll have his Oscar win revoked based on past precedence (is anyone shocked these people are cool with Roman Polanski?) and a reaction from board member Whoopi Goldberg.

Shortly after the Academy made its statement, the Screen Actors Guild (which is now the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) released one of their own on the SAG-AFTRA website:

It’s non-specific, but they are vowing to take action against Will Smith. I don’t know what that would entail; I doubt they’re going to kick him out of SAG-AFTRA and give up all those megastar union dues. And while I understand coordinating with the Academy, what is ABC going to do, refuse to air Men in Black during the Sunday Night Movie slot? Whatever the case, SAG-AFTRA is certainly talking a good game right now.

Once the two organizations made it clear they weren’t standing behind him, Will Smith issued an apology to slapee Chris Rock on Instagram:

After his acceptance speech and his party-hearty-Marty demeanor after the ceremony, it’s safe to say this is the Fresh Prince in ass-covering mode, hoping to mitigate whatever damage this may do to his career and reputation. But then, this morning, Jada Pinkett Smith issued her own Instagram take on the incident:

That holds about as much meaning as saying nothing at all, but it sounds like something a vapid Hollywood diva who craves attention would put together for some social media likes.

As for Chris Rock, he hasn’t said anything yet, and I don’t blame him. He’s emerged from this looking better than anyone, so it’s best he just let it play out while he watches and chuckles. I wouldn’t be surprised if he were writing a new stand-up bit over it, though. And he’ll need some material because perhaps the best news to come out of this fiasco is that tickets for Rock’s upcoming shows have skyrocketed in price. Good for him; he played this perfectly, and he’s earned some kind of remuneration.

For an amusing footnote to the Will Smith slap story, check out Ryan’s report on the dismal ratings for Sunday’s Academy Awards on RK Outpost:

Are you enjoying the aftermath of the slap fight? What do you think the fallout should be for Will Smith? Will Chris Rock tickets eventually match a night’s stay at that Star Wars hotel? Let us know in the comments, and stick around Geeks + Gamers for more from Hollywood!