Chris Rock has broken his silence over the Oscars slap heard ’round the world.
The comedian, who has remained mum since being slapped and cursed out by Will Smith over a joke at the Academy Awards on Sunday night, addressed the incident at a comedy show in Boston on Wednesday.
“How was your weekend?” he said, according to Variety. “I don’t have a bunch of shit about what happened, so if you came to hear that, I have a whole show I wrote before this weekend. I’m still kind of processing what happened. So, at some point I’ll talk about that shit. And it will be serious and funny.”
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The crowd at the sold-out show, Rock’s first appearance since the incident at the Oscars, gave the comedian a standing ovation the moment he walked on stage that lasted roughly four minutes. At one point, Deadline reports, audience members sat down, but then rose again to continue cheering for Rock.
This is pretty much in line with Hollywood’s take on the matter: celebrities including Judd Apatow, Zoë Kravitz, and Oscars hosts Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer have spoken out against Smith’s actions, siding with Rock even after he insulted Jada Pinkett Smith’s medical condition.
There’s been high interest in Rock’s “Ego Death World Tour” in the wake of Sunday’s events. For the first two shows in Boston, tickets have reportedly been marked up to $1,000 each.
As he was presenting the award for Best Documentary Feature at Sunday’s Oscar ceremonies, Rock lobbed a joke at Pinkett Smith over her appearance, comparing her short hair to Demi Moore’s shaved head in the 1997 film G.I. Jane. In response, Smith took to the Dolby Theater stage and slapped Rock—or, as Rock said from the microphone “smacked the shit” out of him—later yelling “Keep my wife’s name out your fucking mouth!” for the entire auditorium to hear.
Smith went on to apologize to the Academy and Rock for his actions. Rock, even from his stand-up stage, still has not said anything about his comments towards Pinkett Smith.
The Best Actor winner now faces consequences from the Academy, who could suspend his membership or even revoke his award over the slap.
The Academy said they did ask Smith to exit the event after his act of violence, though he refused to leave. A source told CNN, seemingly questioning Academy’s account: “Academy leadership strongly considered removing Will Smith from last night's broadcast following the incident. There were immediate discussions but the Academy decision makers were seated in various spots in the Dolby Theater and couldn’t mobilize to make a decision before he won best actor.”
So, at this point, everyone has made a statement: Will Smith has apologized, Chris Rock is “still processing,” and Jada Pinkett Smith has declared this the “season for healing.”
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