Will Smith breaks his silence on the Oscars slap: “Disappointing people is my central trauma”
Months after actor Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock on stage live at the Oscars, Smith has publicly addressed questions about the incident for the first time. Smith posted a video titled, “It’s been a minute” on his personal YouTube channel. Wearing a white baseball cap and casual clothes, Smith sits on a couch and reads aloud questions about the altercation, questions he then answers. Smith describes the questions as “fair.” The brief introduction to the video reads: “Over the last few months, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and personal work.” During the Oscar broadcast back in March, Smith unexpectedly rose from his seat in the audience and walked up to the stage as Rock was performing. Smith then slapped Rock. The slap came after Rock had made a joke about Smith’s wife, actor Jada Pickett Smith, and her hair. Pickett Smith has alopecia, an autoimmune disease which can cause severe hair loss, among other issues. Her head was shaved at the time. Smith returned to his seat after the slap and shouted at Rock, who …
