During the 94th Academy Awards on March 27, 2022 there was an incident that will never be forgotten.
This is where the A-list celebrity Will Smith walked on to the stage where Chris Rock was hosting and slapped him across the face.
People were unsure if this was a sketch, a joke, or a confusing part of the awards.
However, due to the very real reaction of Chris Rock and his state of confusion, followed by obscene language by Will Smith, people soon realised it was certainly not a joke.
Smith went and slapped Chris due to the latter making a joke about Will’s wife Jada, and her shaved head. There was confusion as to why Smith was not escorted out, as some people started clapping for what he had done and supported this act of aggression.
As time went on, more people condemned the behaviour and supported Rock following the now infamous incident.
The Apology
It was not until four months after this incident, on 29 July, that Smith posted a video to YouTube where he addressed what he had done.
There was a heartfelt apology to Rock, as clearly Smith had spent some time working on himself and moving through some issues that he has.
Smith also took the time to apologise to Rock’s family, due to the shocking nature of what had occurred affecting more than just Chris himself.
Many people linked the behaviour of Smith to toxic masculinity and the portrayal of someone who has a short fuse.
Smith touches on the fact that Rock will not speak to him until he is ready to discuss what was happened, and that he completely accepts this.
It is clear that Smith felt remorse for his actions during this video, as he went on to explain how he has his own demons that he continuously tries to work through.
Something that is highlighted from this is that anger and violence is never the way forward and it causes far more harm than good.
Only time will tell if the two men can ever be anything resembling friends again.