Despite the Academy Awards occurring back in March, the fallout from the annual ceremony has been ongoing. This is thanks to the discourse surrounding Will Smith slapping comic Chris Rock live on national television, shortly before accepting the Best Actor award. A growing number of celebs have responded to Smith’s slap apology video, including Vivica A. Fox who was critical of the Smiths in the past.
After Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on television, plenty of folks weighed in on the incident, and how much fault should come to both the actor and the event runners. Smith’s Independence Day co-star Vivica A. Fox previously admonished his actions, but has now taken a somewhat softer approach. As she told People while appearing at the premiere of The Great Wolf Pack: A Call to Adventure,
I think they're just really going through a season of healing right now. Listen, I love Will Smith. He's one of my favorite people on the planet. We all make mistakes. If there's one person that deserves a second chance, it is him. I think he's taken full accountability for his actions and he apologized. I just hope that we can all move forward from the incident and learned that it must never happen again, especially on that magnitude of a stage.
While Vivica A. Fox admitted she hasn’t been in contact with Jada Pinkett Smith since speaking out about The Slap, she does seem to think that the family is in a state of healing. It was no doubt a challenging few months, but Will Smith’s latest video apology might have the potential to help the award winning actor’s professional comeback. We’ll just have to wait and see how it all shakes out.
Vivica A. Fox’s comments to People are just the latest example of someone weighing on the Will Smith/Chris Rock situation since the recent Oscar winner posted an apology video. Oscars host Regina Hall also shared her thoughts, and she was one of the people in the room for the now-viral incident. And as Smith has only just started emerging in public and being active on social media, smart money says this discourse is going to continue for the foreseeable future.
For those you are unfamiliar with the story, Vivica A. Fox famously weighed in on Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s role in the Oscars Slap while guest hosting on The Wendy Williams Show back in June. Her quotes quickly went viral, starting with:
When I saw this video last night, it made me cry. I'll be very honest with you guys.We were all rooting for Will Smith that night. We wanted him to win. Will Smith that night, as far as I was concerned, was going to be crowned this generation's Sidney Poitier, which is a huge honor. I felt like to be a good partner, there was no accountability… Let's not forget that Chris Rock was assaulted... for basically telling a joke that I really felt wasn't that bad.
Vivica A. Fox shared her thoughts on a very public forum, as The Wendy Williams Show was extremely popular even while the titular host was absent in its final season. And while her latest comments are a bit softer, that wasn’t the original message. Later in her same guest host appearance, she further explained her feelings about Jada Pinkett Smith in particular, saying:
I have love for the Smiths. I know their children, I've watched them grow up...I just wish that we could have had a little bit more accountability and for it to not seem so self-righteous on Jada's part. And that's my feeling.
In the end, Will Smith’s slap of Chris Rock seems to have a multitude of effects on the actor and his family. Both Will and Jada’s Q scores suffered as a result, and a number of his projects were put on hold. But perhaps this might change now that a longer apology was given. Regardless, he’s been banned from the Oscars for a decade, and has dropped out of the Academy. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
