Topline
Denzel Washington broke his public silence Saturday on Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars, saying “for whatever reason the devil got ahold of him that night,” one day after Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as the industry group weighed disciplinary action against him.
Denzel Washington arrives at the Oscars on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby Theatre in Los … [+]
Key Facts
While speaking at the International Leadership Summit, Washington said he and Tyler Perry approached Smith during the commercial break that followed the slap and said prayers with him.
Washington said he didn’t want to say what the trio talked about, though he added that while he didn’t know all the details of the situation, he knew “the only solution was prayer, the way I see it.”
During Smith’s acceptance speech for best actor, he thanked Washington and said that Washington told him, “At your highest moment, be careful—that’s when the devil comes for you.”
Crucial Quote
“Well, there’s a saying, ‘When the devil ignores you, then you know you’re doing something wrong.’ The devil goes, ‘Oh no, leave him alone, he’s my favorite,’” Washington said. “Conversely, when the devil comes at you, maybe it’s because he’s trying to do something right. And for whatever reason the devil got ahold of him that night.”
Key Background
During Sunday’s Academy Awards, Rock joked about the baldness of Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who has alopecia, a medical condition causing hair loss. Smith walked on stage and slapped Rock, before returning to his seat and yelling at Rock to “keep my wife’s name out your f***ing mouth.” Smith posted an apology on Instagram on Monday, writing that “a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear.” Rock said during a stand up show in Boston he is “still kind of processing” what had happened. Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday, and said he would accept any punishment imposed on him by the group, which is investigating the incident. It had been expected to consider expulsion or suspension.
Tangent
Jim Carrey slammed the audience in an interview with CBS for giving Smith a standing ovation following the slap when he received the Oscar for best actor, saying he was “sickened.” “Hollywood is just spineless en masse and it really felt like this is a really clear indication that we aren’t the cool club anymore,” Carrey said. Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe took a more blase approach, saying “I’m just so already dramatically bored of hearing people’s opinions about that. I just don’t want to be another opinion adding to it.”
Further Reading
Will Smith Resigns From Academy As It Probes His Slap Of Chris Rock At Oscars (Forbes)
Suspension, Expulsion: How The Academy Could Punish Will Smith For Slapping Chris Rock (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/annakaplan/2022/04/02/denzel-washington-for-whatever-reason-the-devil-got-ahold-of-will-smith-on-oscars-night/