All the love. Will Smith’s family is proud of him after he publicly apologized to Chris Rock. Sources reveal that they love him regardless and are enthusiastic that he took a step in the right direction.
Sources close to the Smith family revealed to Hollywood Life on August 2, 2022, that they are completely understanding of Will’s actions to apologize. “Jada is proud that Will finally made the decision to apologize publicly,” the source said. “She feels that in addition to the written apology, him opening up about it by talking was a better way to convey the truth in his heart. Will wishes he could take it all back, but he can’t and all he can do is try to heal the wounds from here.” On how he feels about the apology, the source noted that Will wanted to wait it off. “It’s something he’s struggled with because he didn’t want an apology to come off as inauthentic or disingenuous,” the source continued.” He needed some time to do some soul searching and wanted to respond accordingly. Despite Will’s apology, he understands if Chris isn’t ready to accept it at this point. He gets that the slap didn’t only affect Chris, but it affected his career, his family and friends, it affected every aspect of his life. Will knows he can’t control that; all he can do is try to show how much he’s sorry and move forward.”
His children, Jaden and Willow, have been supportive of him since the Oscar slap incident happened. “Willow and her brother Jaden were not in any way involved in what happened, but they did get a lot of heat for supporting their father following the incident and because of this they have both experienced a lot of backlash – in their career and with their friends,” the source continued. “They are both really proud of their father and really hope this can start the healing so that everyone can move on from this and come to a place of love.” In a recent interview with Billboard, Willow opened up about how she truly felt about the incident. “[It] didn’t rock me as much as my own internal demons,” she said”I see my whole family as being human and I love and accept them for all their humanness,” she added. “Because of the position that we’re in, our humanness sometimes isn’t accepted, and we’re expected to act in a way that isn’t conducive to a healthy human life and isn’t conducive to being honest.”
Will released the video on July 29, 2022, as a further public apology to Chris. “I’ve reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that he’s not ready to talk and when he is, he will reach out,” he said in the video. “So I will I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you. My behavior was unacceptable.“I want to apologize to Chris’s mother,” he continued. “I saw an interview that Chris’s mother did. And that was one of the things about that moment I just didn’t realize. I wasn’t thinking but how many people got hurt in that moment. So I want to apologize to Chris’s mother. I want to apologize to Chris’s family. Specifically Tony Rock We had a great relationship. Tony Rock was my man. And this is probably irreparable.” He continued, “I spent the last three months replaying and understanding the complexities and nuances of what happened. I’m not gonna try to unpack all of that right now but I can say to you, there was no part of me that thought that was the right way to behave in that moment.”
According to CNN, Chris subtly shaded Will’s apology in his comedy set. “Everybody is trying to be a f*cking victim. If everybody claims to be a victim, then nobody will hear the real victims,” Chris said during his set, “Even me getting smacked by Suge Smith. I went to work the next day, I got kids. Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face.”
The Oscar slap took place four months ago at the Academy Awards on March 27, 2022, after Chris made a joke about Will’s wife Jada Pinkett-Smith. The Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences banned Smith from future events for the next ten years. In an open letter, the Academy announced, “The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards.” The Academy apologized to Rock, the rest of the Academy and the public for the moment: “We want to express our deep gratitude to Mr. Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances. We also want to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their poise and grace during our telecast.” Smith accepted the ban as he previously resigned from The Academy on April 1, 2022.
Image: Penguin Press.
For more about Will Smith, read his memoir, Will. The book, which was number one on The New York Times bestseller list, takes readers through Smith’s life, from his childhood in West Philadelphia and early rap career to his rise as one of Hollywood’s biggest movie stars. The autobiography—which Oprah Winfrey described as “the best memoir I’ve ever read”—also explores a side of Smith’s life he’s never told before. “Will is the story of how one person mastered his own emotions, written in a way that can help everyone else do the same,” the publisher’s description of the book reads. “Few of us will know the pressure of performing on the world’s biggest stages for the highest of stakes, but we can all understand that the fuel that works for one stage of our journey might have to be changed if we want to make it all the way home.”
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