Via JOE:
His first ever Oscar may not be with him for long
Will Smith could be stripped of his Oscar because of his attack on Chris Rock during the awards ceremony on Sunday night.
Comedian Rock was presenting the award for Best Documentary when he made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada.
This caused Smith to march on stage and hit the comedian round the face, before shouting at him from his seat to “keep my wife’s name out your f***ing mouth.”
Timothy Burke on Twitter: “VIA JAPANESE TELEVISION: The uncensored exchange between Will Smith and Chris Rock pic.twitter.com/j0Z184ZyXa / Twitter”
VIA JAPANESE TELEVISION: The uncensored exchange between Will Smith and Chris Rock pic.twitter.com/j0Z184ZyXa
Just moments later, the actor picked up his first ever Academy Award, winning the Oscar for Best Actor for his performance as the Williams sisters’ father in King Richard.
But some are calling for him to be stripped of the award for his violent outburst, with the slap seemingly breaking the Academy’s code of conduct.
https://twitter.com/ShanakiTheWolf/status/1508298370984554503?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1508298370984554503%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.joe.co.uk%2Fentertainment%2Fwill-smith-may-lose-his-oscar-for-violating-academys-code-of-conduct-after-smacking-chris-rock-325792
Eienkei 🇨🇦🦁🌞🇺🇦 on Twitter: “Assault on international live broadcast should be enough to strip someone from their Oscar and land them in jail. Normalizing violence because you don’t like a joke is insane and the sign of everything wrong with us these days.#ChrisRock #WillSmith #Oscars2022 / Twitter”
Assault on international live broadcast should be enough to strip someone from their Oscar and land them in jail. Normalizing violence because you don’t like a joke is insane and the sign of everything wrong with us these days.#ChrisRock #WillSmith #Oscars2022
In 2017, the Academy issued a Standards of Conduct document, which states that Academy members must “behave ethically by upholding the Academy’s values of respect for human dignity, inclusion, and a supportive environment that fosters creativity.”
It continues: “There is no place in the Academy for people who abuse their status, power or influence in a manner that violates recognized standards of decency.
“The Academy is categorically opposed to any form of abuse, harassment or discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, or nationality.
“The Board of Governors believes that these standards are essential to the Academy’s mission and reflective of our values.”
The Academy issued a statement in the aftermath of the incident, stating that it “does not condone violence of any form.”
The Academy on Twitter: “The Academy does not condone violence of any form.Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world. / Twitter”
The Academy does not condone violence of any form.Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.
In his acceptance speech following his win for Best Actor, Smith gave a lengthy and tearful apology to Rock, the Academy and his fellow nominees, but this may not be enough to stop him being stripped of the award.
A source told the New York Post that it was “basically assault.”
“I think Will would not want to give his Oscar back, but who knows what will happen now,” they added.
Via New York Post:
Will Smith may be asked to hand back his Best Actor statuette following his live onstage assault of Chris Rock, industry insiders told The Post.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which handed out awards Sunday at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, has strict guidelines in its code of conduct.
One highly placed Hollywood source told The Post after the incident: “It’s basically assault. Everyone was just so shocked in the room, it was so uncomfortable.”
“I think Will would not want to give his Oscar back, but who knows what will happen now,” the insider said.
Meanwhile, the Academy cryptically announced from its official Twitter account: “The Academy does not condone violence of any form. Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.”
The Academy on Twitter: “The Academy does not condone violence of any form.Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world. / Twitter”
The Academy does not condone violence of any form.Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.
Smith was seen laughing and posing with photos following his win, as industry bigwigs like Judd Apatow took aim.
“Knocked Up” director Apatow was highly critical of Smith in a now-deleted tweet: “He could have killed him. That’s pure out of control rage and violence. They’ve heard a million jokes about them in the last three decades. They are not freshman in the world of Hollywood and comedy. He lost his mind.”
TV comic Fortune Feimster tweeted: “Someone in the audience charged the stage Friday night during my opener’s set and attempted to throw the speaker, started taking swings at the people trying to stop her and pushed down a security guard. It’s scary times. So, no, I don’t find someone getting hit on stage amusing.”
The Post has reached out to the Academy for comment.
But its conduct code, released in 2017 in the wake of the sexual misconduct scandal that hit the industry, emphasizes the importance of “upholding the Academy’s values,” like inclusion, fostering supportive environments, and “respect for human dignity.”
At the time, AMPAS CEO Dawn Hudson wrote to members: “Academy membership is a privilege offered to only a select few within the global community of filmmakers,” Variety reported.
“In addition to achieving excellence in the field of motion picture arts and sciences, members must also behave ethically by upholding the Academy’s values of respect for human dignity, inclusion, and a supportive environment that fosters creativity. “
She added: “There is no place in the Academy for people who abuse their status, power or influence in a manner that violates recognized standards of decency. The Academy is categorically opposed to any form of abuse, harassment or discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, or nationality. The Board of Governors believes that these standards are essential to the Academy’s mission and reflective of our values.”
In terms of the law, Smith could be in the clear. The Los Angeles Police Department told The Post in a statement that it is aware of the incident.
“LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program,” a rep said. “The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”
