LOS ANGELES — It was the slap heard round the world, or at least among the dwindling population of TV viewers who still bother to watch the Oscars. Will Smith's hand connected with Chris Rock's face during a live broadcast of the 94th Academy Awards on Sunday evening, an awards show that promised big changes, but probably never bargained for anything that big.
Rock was presenting the award for documentary feature, but before announcing the nominees or the winner ("Summer of Soul"), the comedian joked about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who was seated next to her husband at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. "Jada, I love ya. 'G.I. Jane 2,' can't wait to see it," Rock said, seeming to refer to the actor's short hair. Pinkett Smith, who suffers from alopecia, wasn't laughing. And neither was her spouse.
"King Richard" star Will Smith stormed the stage, slapped the comedian, then made his way back to his seat as ABC bleeped the audio feed. But it wasn't hard to read Smith's lips: "Leave my wife's name out your f— mouth," he yelled at Rock.
