Estranged Williams Daughter Has Harsh Words On Will Smith Slap
Will Smith slapping Chris Rock for making a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith's hair quickly became perhaps the most infamous moment in the history of the Academy Awards. Adding to the surreal moment was the fact that shortly after the incident Smith won his first Oscar for his portrayal as Richard Williams in the movie "King Richard." During his acceptance speech, the Hollywood A-lister said the outburst was reminiscent of the character he played. "I look like the crazy father, just like they said about Richard Williams," Will said, per NBC News.
Although Will neglected to apologize to Rock during his lengthy — and emotional — acceptance speech, the actor did formally apologize the following day. "My behavior at last night's Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable," the "Bad Boys" star wrote in a statement on Instagram on March 28. "I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong."
The man who Will played in "King Richard," who is the father of tennis superstars Venus Williams and Serena Williams, publicly denounced Smith's on-stage attack. "We don't know all the details of what happened. But we don't condone anyone hitting anyone else unless it's in self-defense," Richard told NBC News via his son Chavoita LeSane. Immediately following the Oscars altercation, Serena posted a cheeky reaction on her Instagram stories, but later deleted the post, per Us Weekly. Not long after, another daughter of Richard weighed-in on Smith's outburst.
Richard Williams's daughter wanted Will Smith punished
Sabrina Williams, the estranged daughter of Richard Williams from his first marriage, thought Will Smith's actions at the 2022 Academy Awards were completely unacceptable. She was surprised that the "Independence Day" star omitted Chris Rock from his acceptance speech. "So Will Smith got angry, went overboard, and assaulted another person," Sabrina told The U.S. Sun on March 28. "Then you just can't apologize two minutes later, you lost your mind. Wow." Sabrina believed that Smith should have voiced his issues with Rock after the ceremony in a private setting.
There had been talk about Smith potentially losing his Oscar for attacking Rock, and Sabrina believed the Academy should reprimand the movie star. "I agree he should be stripped of the Oscar," she added. Regardless, Sabrina wanted to see some sort of repercussions. "If they don't take the [Oscar] from him, they should ban him from attending the event ever again," she added. The estranged daughter of Richard thought Smith getting away with hitting Rock was a sign of "actor privilege," and thought it sent a message that condoned the slap. "That's like saying violence is okay," Sabrina said.
Despite the wishes of Richard's daughter, Whoopi Goldberg — who is Governor of the Academy's Actor branch — said the Academy had no intention of stripping Smith of his award. "We're not going to take that Oscar from him," she said on "The View" on March 29, Page Six — however, Goldberg was sure Smith would face "consequences" from the Academy.