Kerry Katona has shared the surprising news that she has a secret friendship with Will Smith – and says she wishes he had pulled Chris Rock aside for a chat instead of slapping him at the Oscars.
The 41-year-old former Atomic Kitten star says she has met 53-year-old Oscar winner Will many times on the showbiz circuit and that he was always ‘lovely’ to her.
But now she finds herself disappointed in her showbiz pal after he smacked 57-year-old Chris square across the face at last months’ Oscars ceremony after taking offence to an ill-judged joke about his 50-year-old wife Jada Pinkett-Smith.
Kerry says she wishes that Will had just had a cordial chat with Chris after he joked about Jada’s alopecia – and says she would never condone violence.
Writing in her column for OK!, Kerry revealed her surprising friendship with Will.
She wrote: “The whole world has been talking about Will Smith and Chris Rock at the Oscars.
“I adore Will – I feel like he’s been a massive inspiration to me. I’ve met him several times. We were on Jonathan Ross’s show together and he was the loveliest guy.”
She went on to express her disappointment that Will took the path of violence over diplomacy after being offended by Chris’s joke at the Oscars.
She wrote: “But I think it’s wrong that he slapped Chris. I don’t condone violence. His Oscar is for his work ethic and talent as an actor but, sadly, it has been overshadowed.”
She also advised: “I think he could have handled it differently. Although he was supporting his wife, Jada, he could have had a word with Chris later, away from the cameras.”
Will brought shame on himself and the Academy Awards on Sunday 27 March when he slapped Chris in the face in front of an A-List crowd and the world’s cameras.
He has since resigned from the Academy and apologised to Chris for his actions.
In his resignation statement, he said: "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.
"So, I am resigning from membership in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and will accept any further consequences the Board deems appropriate.”
The Academy, meanwhile, have said they are continuing to investigate the drama that unfolded at the awards show – and Will could yet be stripped of his Best Actor gong which he secured for his performance as Richard Williams in the biopic King Richard.
But a string of upcoming projects have been cancelled at Netflix and Sony in light of Will’s controversial actions – with plans for Bad Boys 4 and a sequel to Bright cancelled.
While plans to make a biography about the Fresh Prince actor’s own life are also at risk of being abandoned as Hollywood reacts to his slap-happy actions.
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