Will Smith news - live: ‘Heartbroken’ actor’s resignation from the Academy accepted by organisation
Best Actor winner resigns from Motion Picture Academy, saying list of those harmed by Oscars slap is “long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones”
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Nearly a week after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars, Hollywood is still abuzz with activity, as celebrities weigh in on the incident, while a “formal review” of the incident began at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Now they’ve got something new to talk about: the King Richard star has resigned from the Academy, which puts on the Oscars.
“The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and global audiences at home,” Smith said in a statement. “I betrayed the trust of the Academy. I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken.”
It’s the latest sign of friction between the Hollywood heavyweight and the film group.
Smith was reportedly asked to leave the Oscars after breaking the Academy’s code of conduct, but he refused.
Though Mr Rock has declined to press charges against Mr Smith, on Wednesday, during the sold-out Boston show of his Ego Death tour, Rock finally addressed the altercation and said he was “still processing.”
“I’m still processing what happened, so at some point I’ll talk about that s***,” the comedian also said on stage, adding, “It’ll be serious. It’ll be funny, but right now I’m going to tell some jokes.”
You can follow all the developments about the “slap that was heard around the world” in our live blog below...
New footage shows Jada Pinkett Smith’s reaction to ‘The Slap'
New footage of Jada Pinkett Smith reacting to husband Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars live ceremony has emerged online.
The footage seemingly filmed on a mobile phone, and shared on TikTok, shows the viewpoint of somebody sat behind the Smiths, who were on the front row.
Pinkett Smith can be seen laughing at Rock’s response to the altercation: “Will smith just slapped the s*** out of me.”
Jacob Stolworthy has the full story:
Footage shows Jada Pinkett Smith’s reaction as Chris Rock responds to Will Smith slap
Pinkett Smith watched on as her husband hit the comedian on stage
Viewers criticise ‘impotent decision’ not to remove Will Smith from Oscars
The Academy is now facing criticism for failing to get Will Smith to leave the Oscars after hitting Chris Rock.
After the board that hands out the Oscars said that “Mr Smith was asked to leave the ceremony and refused”, viewers have questioned how the actor was not only not removed from Hollywood’s biggest night, but went on to win an award minutes later.
Read more below:
Academy criticised for failing to eject Will Smith from Oscars after Chris Rock slap
Actor broke the Academy’s code of conduct by slapping Rock, but apparently did not leave the ceremony when asked
The world now waits with intrigue to see what action, if any, will be taken against Will Smith.
No actor has ever been stripped of their Oscar before, but several stars have had their Academy membership revoked.
Read which five film industry figures were stripped of their membership below.
All the stars who have been expelled from the Academy
As the Academy’s board of governors holds an emergency meeting to discuss The Slap, here’s a look at the five members who have been kicked out before and what they did to deserve it
One filmmaker less than impressed by Will Smith’s slap (and subsequent Best Actor speech) is Pedro Almodóvar.
Writing for IndieWire, the Parallel Mothers director said that he’d felt “absolute rejection” on seeing the altercation take place, while comparing Smith’s speech to that of a “cult leader”.
“You don’t defend or protect the family with your fists, and no, the devil doesn’t take advantage of key moments to do his work,” he said, a reference to Denzel Washington’s words to Smith after he hit Rock.
Rishi Sunak compares criticism of wife to Will Smith’s Oscars slap
Rishi Sunak has compared criticism of his wife’s business ties with Russia to Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars.
The chancellor was speaking on the BBC’s Newscast podcast when he said: “Someone said, ‘Joe Root, Will Smith, and me – not the best of weekends for any of us’.”
He then went on to say: “But I feel, on reflection, both Will Smith and me having our wives attacked – at least I didn’t get up and slap anybody, which is good.”
Sunak’s wife has a stake in IT giant Infosys which has continued to operate in Russia since the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine. The stake is reported to be worth around £690m.
Ricky Gervais says he would have joked about Jada Pinkett Smith’s ‘boyfriend’ instead of her hair
Ricky Gervais has said he would have joked about Jada Pinkett Smith’s “boyfriend” instead of her bald hair.
During a stand-up show in London, the comedian addressed the Oscars controversy head on.
He joked: “People were going, ‘What would have happened if Ricky Gervais had been doing it hosting the Oscars?’ Well, nothing, as I would not have made a joke about his wife’s hair. I would have made a joke about her boyfriend.”
Earlier this week, Gervais retweeted a post featuring an alopecia joke from The Office.
Will Smith’s slap of Chris Rock received 66 complaints from TV viewers
Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars received 66 complaints from viewers watching at home.
Though watched by around 15 million people in the US, the FCC only received a very small number of complaints over the incident.
One of the complaints obtained by TMZ said: “Will Smith physically and verbally assaulted Chris Rock in front of the world on national TV at the Oscars tonight,” it read. “It was so bad the words Will was yelling at Chris were blocked out from the public’s hearing. Will should be banned from further Oscars and should be arrested for assault which we all saw. There should be no allowance for privilege for such violence which would be apparent to all.”
George Wallace wants Chris Rock to sue Will Smith
Legendary comedian George Wallace wants Chris Rock to sue Will Smith over the slap at the Oscars.
Wallace, best known for his HBO specials and shows in Las Vegas said “I would sue him for $200m (£152m).”
He also said that Smith “crossed the line”: “The first step crossed the line. He just laughed at the joke, which wasn’t a great joke but it was a good joke. Will Smith could have asked for an apology after the show. But nobody would remember the damn joke if he’d just stayed in his seat.”
Wallace also praised the Oscars show and the performance of hosts Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes and Regina Hall but said Smith came along to “screw it up”.
Oscars producer reveals LAPD were ‘prepared’ to arrest Will Smith
Oscars producer Will Packer said Los Angeles police were “prepared” to arrest Will Smith after he slapped Chris Rock on the Academy Awards stage.
In a forthcoming interview on Good Morning America, Packerrevealed that the Los Angeles Police Department told Rock they were “prepared to get [Smith]” after the actor struck him before the Oscars live audience on 27 March.
“They were saying, you know, this is battery, was a word they used in that moment,” Packer said in a clip from the interview which was released by ABC on Thursday (31 March).
“They said we will go get him. We are prepared. We’re prepared to get him right now. You can press charges, we can arrest him. They were laying out the options,” he continued, adding that Rock was “very dismissive” of the idea.
Read the full story here:
Oscars producer says police were ‘prepared’ to arrest Will Smith
LAPD officers said slap amounted to ‘battery’, says Will Packer
Will Smith ‘made second apology’ during six-minute Zoom call with Oscar bosses
Will Smith reportedly called Academy leadership on Zoom earlier this week to express remorse over slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars.
It has been reported that Smith called Academy president David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson on Tuesday (29 March) and apologised for his actions during a “brief” Zoom call.
One source with direct knowledge of the meeting between Smith, Ruben and Hudson told Variety the call lasted for roughly 30 minutes. A separate report by Deadline, however, claims the Zoom meeting only lasted six minutes.
During the call, Smith tried to explain why Rock’s joke about wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head caused him to slap the comedian onstage at the live awards ceremony.
He also apologised to Rubin and Hudson again, adding that he understood his actions would invite consequences from the Academy.
Full story here:
What Will Smith said during a call with Oscars bosses after hitting Chris Rock
Board members criticised Academy over ‘lack of transparency’ in how it has been dealing with fallout from onstage altercation
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