Saturday Night Live has poked fun at the infamous Oscar slap in a sketch from the point of view of an excited seat filler at the ceremony.
On Saturday (2 April), SNL host Jerrod Carmichael and actor Kyle Mooney played seat fillers, while actor Chris Redd caricatured Will Smith in a parody of the altercation between Chris Rock and Smith.
In the sketch, Redd’s Smith is seen sitting on a chair when Carmichael starts talking to him.
“I don’t want to sound corny but you’re my hero, man,” Carmichael says. “This is the coolest night of my life. I’m talking to Will Smith, Chris Rock just got up on stage. Can I get a selfie real quick?”
Smith obliges, and as the seat filler gets his phone ready to click a photo, Redd’s Smith says “I’ll be right back, man” and walks off.
Soon after, a slap is heard in the background as the seat filler is visibly shocked at what he just saw.
Redd returns to his seat as if nothing happened and resumes his coversation with Carmichael’s seat filler. However, he pauses mid-way to scream: “Keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth.”
Soon after that, Mooney’s seat filler, oblivious of the slapping incident, joins Redd and Carmichael and pulls out his phone and says he should tweet that he’s sitting next to Will Smith, which is when he learns what happened.
Redd continues to engage in a conversation with both seat fillers as they begin to look uncomfortable speaking to him.
“What else should I say [in my acceptance speech]?” Redd asks them.
Mooney replies: “Love makes you do crazy things.”
Redd says he likes the suggestion and offers to credit Mooney for it, which he declines.
“The last couple of years have been crazy with Covid, Zoom meetings, Red Table Talk,” Redd says, his voice in a mock-emotional tone as he refers to the talk show hosted by Jada Pinkett Smith.
The skit ends with “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” playing in the background, with Redd saying everything is normal while recreating Smith’s celebratory dance at the Oscars after-party.
