Serena Williams was left stunned after Will Smith punched Chris Rock during the Oscars before accepting best actor for his portrayal as her dad.
The star-studded audience were gobsmacked when the 53-year-old leapt on stage after comedian Chris made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett.
The actress, who suffers from alopecia, took offence to his quip and despite Will initially being seen laughing, he shocked his fellow Hollywood A-listers as he walked on stage and smacked Chris around the face.
“Keep my wife’s name out your f**king mouth,” Will shouted at Chris, prompting the funnyman to reply: “Wow, dude. Yeah it was a GI Jane joke.”
“Keep my wife’s name out your f**king mouth,” the actor angrily repeated.
Will was nominated for Best Actor for his role as Richard Williams, the father of tennis superstars Serena and Venus, in the critically-acclaimed biopic King Richard.
And Serena shared her stunned reaction to the incident in a series of clips on her Instagram Stories, revealing she was just as shocked as everyone else.
In the first clip, she can be seen wide-eyed and looking around in disbelief, while in a second video, she told the camera she had to sit down out of shock.
“I just sat down 'cus I was like I gotta put that drink down,” the mum-of-one said, as cheers could be heard in the Oscars screening room behind her.
Serena later shared a video of her standing right next to Chris Rock, who had his back to her.
She pulled a face at the camera, before looking sheepish and laughing, then walking away.
Following the tense exchange, which has left viewers and celebrities speechless, Will then scooped the award for Best Actor, and apologised for the violent incident during his emotional speech.
“I’m being called on in my life to love people and to protect people and to be a river to my people,” the father-of-three said, as he wiped away tears.
“Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father, just like they said. I look like the crazy father just like they said about Richard Williams but love will make you do crazy things,” he added, as he apologised to “the Academy” and to “all my fellow nominees”.
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