Chris Rock isn’t planning to reconcile his friendship with Will Smith — at least not yet.
As you know, the “slap seen ‘round the world” has become one of the most talked about celebrity altercations of 2022, if not ever. Everyone was shocked to see the Fresh Prince of Bel Air actor walk onstage and slap the stand-up comedian following a joke targeted at Jada Pinkett Smith — it even landed the slapper himself a 10 year ban from the award ceremony! (And that’s from the same Academy that celebrated a super violent biopic like American Sniper!)
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Just four days ago Smith posted an apology video commenting on the event, calling his own behavior “unacceptable” and stating his memories surrounding what happened at the Oscars were “fuzzy”:
“I was fogged out by that point. It’s all fuzzy. I’ve reached out to Chris, and the message that came back is that he’s not ready to talk. And when he is, he will reach out. So I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you. My behavior was unacceptable, and I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk.”
He even promised the two actors would “be friends again” given a little time:
“But I promise you, I am deeply devoted and committed to putting light and love and joy into the world. And, you know, if you hang on, I promise we’ll be able to be friends again.”
Since the moment the infamous slap took place, Rock has done his best to make light of the situation. And although he hasn’t addressed it directly, we’ve reported how he’s hinted at the smack in some of his stand-up routines. An eyewitness source told US Weekly the comedian joked about it at a New Jersey show in late July:
“Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face.”
The Saturday Night Live star has seriously done an excellent job handling the situation, but just because he’s joking around doesn’t mean he’s ready to be friends with the Men In Black actor again! A close source to Chris told the outlet on Tuesday:
“Chris has no immediate plans to have a one-on-one with Will.”
Ouch! Well — not as ouch as a slap across the face!
The Madagascar actor doesn’t seem to be holding a grudge, though, as the source said he’s moving past the issue:
“He’s moving forward.”
The 7 Pounds actor has apologized profusely following the incident, but on August 1 following his YouTube video a source alleges Jada at least partially orchestrated the apologies — because the controversy has just become too much for her talk show Red Table Talk:
“Jada has also been pushing Will to apologize because it has become this really dark cloud over her Red Table Talk series.”
The insider alleges Pinkett Smith was pushing for an apology because the public was “waiting for any mention of that moment” on her show. The source also states the Gemini Man actor “never wanted to” publicly apologize in the first place!
Whoa.
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[Image via MEGA/WENN/YouTube/ABC]
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