Ever since Will Smith slapped up Chris Rock, the internet has been awash with conspiracy theories.
There was controversy during Sunday night's Oscars when the comedian mocked Will's wife Jada Pinkett Smith, who has alopecia, by joking about her hair.
Jada looked visibly upset when Chris joked he was excited to see her in GI Jane 2, a film in which Demi Moore shaved her head for the role, then faced the wrath of her hubby.
After Will stormed on stage and slapped Chris, the stunned comedian cried: "Wow, Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me."
While he tried to make light of the situation, upset Will returned to his seat and started shouting : "Keep my wife's name out your f***ing mouth."
While many believe it was just raw emotion, the tin foil hate brigade are out in full force claiming it was all a set up.
From cheek pads to a Shakespearian curse, here is a debunking of some of the theories.
Cheek pad
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A very elaborate theory that Chris was wearing a cheek pad is gaining traction online.
Presumably such contraption, which we are not sure actually exists, would be used to soften the blow from Will's hand.
On Tuesday a tweet went viral with a photo zoomed in on Chris' face with the caption: "In 8k quality images you can see a pad on Chris Rock’s cheek, yeah conspiracy theorists gonna go crazy with this one."
His cheek certainly does look raised in the snap and there is a strange line across his face, but the image is incredibly zoomed in.
Professional images from the event give a better indication - and it's apparent Chris isn't wearing anything on his face.
Tech website Gizmodo has also given a reason behind the 'cheek pad' supposedly seen on Rock’s face by pointing out this was likely an artefact caused by upscaling images from the incident.
They said that pixelated or low-quality images can be enhanced with phone apps like Remini which scale up images by using what is already there to add extra details.
While the snap does look a better quality, the results are never completely accurate because it has to guess what would make it better.
Fake slap
Since the unbelievable moment aired, many people have gone back through the footage with a thine tooth comb.
While watching the clip in slow motion it could be interpreted that Chris was expecting to be hit.
Others have pointed out that he also doesn't defend himself as his hands are behind his back, there was no involvement from security and he was allowed to return to his seat.
One person on Twitter said: ''Chris Rock grimacing for what he knows is coming. His hand barely grazed him.
''Actors, especially action actors like Will Smith, know how to pull a punch (or slap) This was staged."
Another added: ''Will Smith and Chris Rock pulled off the work of the decade.. imagine believing this was real #FakeSlap"
While a third agreed: "'It was fake though. Will Smith would not have slapped Chris Rock like that for real on live TV. Too much class. If you watch closely in slow motion, Chris braced for the slap before it even came. The probably got paid good for that though.''
However, a body language expert, Darren Stanton, has claimed that the slap could not be faked.
Darren said viewers could see the 'visible emotional shift' within the couple after the joke was made.
"The joke targeting Jada’s shaved head following her battle with alopecia, clearly made her uncomfortable and she showed signs in her face of awkwardness and disdain after being embarrassed in front of her peers and the world," Darren told Slingo.
"Will, on the other hand, made a slightly loose laugh and leant back in his chair, which is a sign of tension or uneasiness."
The expert went on to say that Will did a 'chin thrust', which is a sign of dominance, and that his reaction was completely genuine.
Darren added: "There’s been a number of theories online that this confrontation was staged, however, gauging from the degree of anger that Will Smith was displaying, this was 100% genuine.
"You cannot fake that level of emotion."
Macbeth curse
One of the wackiest theories going is that Chris brought the drama upon himself because of the Macbeth curse.
According to an old superstition, no one should ever utter the name of the Shakespearean character in a theatre unless they are performing or rehearsing a line.
They should instead refer to him as "the Scottish king" or "the Scottish lord" and say "the Scottish play".
However, Chris did not heed this warning and some are convinced he cursed the awards ceremony by saying its name when praising Denzel Washington's performance in last year's film.
One Twitter user said: "To be fair, Chris Rock put a hex on himself by saying ‘Macbeth’ in a theater."
Another added: "Keep… Macbeth’s name… out of your FU****G mouth."
Possible motives
With the Oscars' viewing figures dwindling over the last few years, some are convinced the slap was a stunt to bring viewers back in.
But what would Chris' motive be for getting slapped up in front of millions?
Some people believe the whole thing was staged to help Chris' career - and he has certainly benefitted from the scandal.
Ticket sales for his upcoming Ego Death World Tour, which is the comedian's first comedy tour in five years, are soaring after smack-gate.
A ticket sales site reported selling more tickets overnight from Sunday to Monday than they had all together in the last month and they have jumped up in value by more than 200% on the secondary market.
Ticket marketplace TickPick told People that more than 50 percent of its sales for the tour had been made since the altercation at the Oscars - despite having first gone on sale last month, on February 24.
Brett Goldberg, TickPick co-founder and co-CEO, told the outlet: "The circumstances surrounding the incident at the Oscars continue to cause demand to surge for Chris Rock's tour.
"More than 50 percent of tour sales on our platform have come through since Sunday's Oscars and we expect this trajectory to continue."
Will's apology
Will has now issued a public apology to Chris and admitted that he was embarrassed by his violent behaviour.
In the statement, Will said: "Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive.
"My behavior at last night's Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes a my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada's medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally.
"I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be.
"There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness."
Admitting he is still "a work in progress", Will stated that what he did was wrong and also apologised to The Academy and the Williams family.
He continued: "I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be.
"There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness."
Oscars organisers condemned Will's actions and revealed they would be holding in internal review into the chaos.
Their statement read: "The Academy condemns the actions of Mr. Smith at last night's show. We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law."
The issue has really split the world, with some backing Will's actions and others calling for him to be stripped of his Oscars award.
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