Jada Pinkett Smith has now revealed what Chris Rock told her off camera after Will Smith stormed up to the Oscars presenter and punched him in the face over the comedian’s joke about her shaved head at the 94th Academy Awards in 2022.
During an appearance with the “Today” show on Friday, the 52-year-old actress revealed that Rock apologized to her shortly after the incident, while viewers were watching footage of the nominees for Best Documentary Feature.
“And Chris looks to me and he says, ‘Jada, I meant no harm,’” Smith told the host. “Now, I’m just out of it because I’m really worried about Will. And Will’s still talking because now he’s mad because Chris is talking to me.”
EXCLUSIVE: Jada Pinkett Smith spoke to @hodakotb about feeling "shocked" after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock: "We haven't called each other husband and wife in a long time. I'm like, 'What is going on right now?'" pic.twitter.com/tuqshIZ6OH
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) October 13, 2023
Jada stated that she believed some people blamed her for what happened because she had previously disclosed her “entanglement” with musician August Alsina years earlier in 2020.
At the time, the actress said it happened while she and Will were separated for a short time. She recently stated, however, that the two stars had been “separated” since 2016.
In an interview with People magazine earlier this week, the “Girls Trip” star revealed that Rock had asked her out on a date during one of the times the Hollywood marriage was in the press for divorce rumors, which may provide some context for what happened at the Oscars.
“I think every summer, all the reports would come out that me and Will were getting a divorce,” Pinkett Smith said. “And this particular summer, Chris, he thought that we were getting a divorce.”
“So he called me and basically he was like, ‘I’d love to take you out,’” she added. “And I was like, ‘What do you mean?’ He was like, ‘Well, aren’t you and Will getting a divorce?’ I was like, ‘No. Chris, those are just rumors.’ He was appalled. And he profusely apologized, and that was that.”
