Chris Rock sold more tour tickets after Oscars slap 'than in past month' as sales surge

Ticket sales for Chris Rock 's comedy tour are said to have sky-rocketed, with him having reportedly sold more tickets since the Oscars than in the whole month prior.

The stand-up comedian, 57, was a guest presenter at the prestigious awards ceremony on Sunday night, which ended in controversy following a joke he made in his speech.

He suggested that Jada Pinkett Smith, 50, looked like G.I. Jane - seemingly in reference to her shaved head, which she has said is related to hair loss as a result of alopecia.

It prompted her husband Will Smith, 53, to confront Chris on the stage, with him seen slapping the comedian and warning him against further jokes about wife Jada.

Chris Rock was slapped by Will Smith during the live broadcast of the Oscars recently (AFP via Getty Images)

Will has been criticised for resorting to violence and Chris criticised for seemingly joking about alopecia - though it's been reported that he wasn't aware Jada had the condition.

And whilst the controversy has shown an ugly side to Hollywood, there appears to have been a silver lining for Chris - who has reportedly seen a surge in tour ticket sales.

He's set to embark on his Ego Death World Tour in the coming weeks, with him reportedly due to perform at a handful of gigs later this week - just days after the incident.

Chris had made a joke about Will's wife Jada Pinkett Smith as part of a speech at the event (Getty Images)

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Ticket marketplace TickPick has reported a significant increase in sales, tweeting yesterday: "We sold more tickets to see Chris Rock overnight than we did in the past month combined."

It 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.

Ticket sales for Chris' comedy tour are said to have surged since the incident (REUTERS)

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," he further said in the statement.

It was previously reported that ticket prices on the secondary market have increased by more than 200 percent - having once been $46, but since listed for up to $341.

The Mirror approached reps of Chris Rock for comment.

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