Will Smith has heard from nearly every member of Chris Rock’s family since he slapped the CB4 comedian on stage at the Oscars last month, including Rock’s brothers, who want to fight him. Now, the latest member of the Rock family to speak out about the incident is Rock’s mother, Rose.
In an interview with WIS, the author and motivational speaker said her son is “still processing” the incident but is doing well, although the family’s pain over the slap still stung.
“You reacted to your wife giving you the side-eye and you went and made her day because she was mulled over laughing when it happened,” Rose said of Smith’s actions. Originally believing it to be a skit, her opinion of the matter changed once Smith yelled, “Keep my wife’s name out your fuckin’ mouth!”
***WATCH MY EXCLUSIVE*** For the first time since the #OscarsSlap Rose Rock, the mother of Chris Rock is speaking out about the incident. During our interview, she explains how Will and Jada Smith's actions hurt her and her family. @wis10 https://t.co/xhBEdu8VbS
— Billie Jean Shaw (@BillieJeanTV) April 23, 2022
Rose Rock later revealed this was the first Oscars telecast she didn’t attend in person and instead stayed home, watching her son get slapped along with millions of people.
“I told someone when Will slapped Chris, he slapped all of us, but he really slapped me,” she said. “When you hurt my child, you hurt me.”
Smith slapped her son on stage after he made a G.I. Jane joke about his wife Jada Pinkett. Consequently, the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences voted to ban Smith from any Oscars-related events for a decade, a move Rose found to be silly.
“What does that mean?” she wondered. “You don’t even go every year.”
Meanwhile, Chris himself hasn’t spoken about the matter. Despite fans in Boston hoping he’d speak during a tour stop days after the slap, he told the audience he was saving it for another day. At a recent stop in Indio, California, the comedian revealed he would speak on the matter — when he gets “paid.”