Will Smith Tears Up as He Addresses Chris Rock Oscars Slap: 'It Was a Mess'

Will Smith has addressed his actions at the 2022 Oscars ceremony in March during his first late night show appearance since the incident.

The actor slapped the awards show's host, Chris Rock, after the comedian made a joke at the expense of his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Rock joked about her shaved head, and Pinkett Smith suffers from hair loss due to alopecia.

Smith appeared on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah on Monday, November 28, to discuss his new film Emancipation, which is being released in theaters on December 2, ahead of its premiere on Apple TV+.

Will Smith Tears Up as He Addresses Chris Rock Oscars Slap: 'It Was a Mess'

While appearing on The Daily Show, Smith explained that in that moment at the Oscars he "was gone" and said: "That was a rage that had been bottled for a really long time."

The King Richard star explained that his nine-year-old nephew had been watching the ceremony and when he returned home he'd asked the actor why he had struck Rock.

Smith said: "He stayed up late to see his Uncle Will. We are sitting in the kitchen, he's on my lap holding the Oscar, [and he asked] 'why did you hit that man, Uncle Will?'"

The actor was moved to tears during his conversation with Noah, asking the late night host: "Why you trying to Oprah me?" before adding: "I was like, it was a mess. I don't want to go too far into it to give people more to misunderstand."

Smith later added that he had been "going through something" on the night of the 2022 Oscars, but that "doesn't justify my behavior at all."

He went on: "We just gotta be nice to each other, man. It's hard. I guess the thing that was most painful for me, is I took my heart and made it hard for other people. I understood the idea when they say hurt people hurt people."

What Happened at the 2022 Oscars?

Smith slapped Rock during the 94th Academy Awards after the comedian made a joke about Pinkett Smith's shaved head. While introducing the nominees for Best Documentary, he had compared her look to G.I. Jane.

Smith shouted at Rock twice that he should "keep my wife's name out your f****** mouth" when he returned to his seat from the stage.

When he collected his Oscar several minutes later, Smith took the opportunity during his acceptance speech to apologize to his fellow nominees and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In the fallout, Smith later resigned from the Academy, which in April announced that the star would be banned from all of its events, both in person and virtually, for 10 years.

"I accept and respect the Academy's decision," Smith said in a brief statement following the announcement.