Will Smith has made it clear he fully intends to repair his relationship with Chris Rock — a claim the comedian’s brother, Tony Rock, has alleged is just for show.
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In a video released by Smith months following the slap heard around the world, the Academy Award winner revealed he had “reached out to Chris and the message that came back was that he’s not ready to talk.”
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However, Tony Rock has said that wasn’t the case at all. “That wasn’t true, that wasn’t true,” alleged Rock. “I think like, two nights later, he said, ‘I reached out to Chris, and he didn’t want to talk.’ That wasn’t true.”
Adding insult to injury, Tony revealed he considered The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star a close friend. And while, “He doesn’t owe me anything, I just thought we were better than that.”
Tony went on to add that if Smith genuinely wanted to make amends, he knows how to reach him. “My phone number has never changed. So, I just thought I’d get a phone call one day like, ‘Ay, let’s just you and I just talk.’ It hasn’t happened, so I guess it’s not going to happen.”
In March 2022, chaos would ensue after Chris Rock, who was hosting the Academy Awards for the third time, made a G.I. Jane 2 joke at the expense of Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who suffers from alopecia — a hair loss condition. Moments later, the Bad Boys actor boldly marched on stage and smacked the 57-year-old comic with an open hand.
“Keep my wife’s name out your fucking mouth!” an angry Smith could be heard yelling after walking back to his seat, to which a stunned Chris replied, “Wow, dude! It was a G.I. Jane joke… I’m going to, ok?”
Moments later, Smith subsequently gave an emotional acceptance speech — after winning Best Actor for his performance as Richard Williams, the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams, in King Richard — though he omitted an apology to Chris Rock at that time.
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In the weeks following, Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was ultimately banned from attending Academy events for a decade.
