Will Smith Sends Apology Message, Chris Rock: Not Ready To Talk
JAKARTA - Will Smith answered some questions about the shocking incident at the Oscars when he suddenly attacked Chris Rock on stage after the comedian joked about the appearance of Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
In April, Smith withdrew from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, the group that awards the Oscars, and the organization also barred him from attending Oscars for 10 years.
Chris Rock joked about the appearance of Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, and mentioned the film GI Jane (1997) in which actress Demi Moore shaved off her hair. It is not known if Rock knew that Pinkett Smith had a medical condition that causes hair loss.
Will Smith said his wife, who rolled her eyes at Rock's joke, didn't ask him to do anything.
Less than an hour after slapping Chris Rock, Smith gave a tearful speech as he accepted the best actor award for his role in "King Richard", playing the father of tennis players Serena and Venus Williams.
In the video, Smith also answers the question of why he didn't apologize to Rock during a speech.
"Everything was a blur at the time," said Smith.
Now, Will Smith uploaded a video uploaded on YouTube, Friday, July 29. He said he regretted having slapped Chris Rock at this year's Academy Awards and had tried to contact the comedian to talk but to no avail.
"There wasn't a part of me that thought it was the right thing to do at the time," Smith says in the video.
"I'm so sorry. I try to be sorry without feeling ashamed of myself. I'm human and I make mistakes."
Smith said he had been trying to reach Rock and "the message he was getting was he wasn't ready to talk."
"Chris, I'm sorry for you. What I did was unacceptable. And I'm here whenever you're ready to talk," Smith said.
Smith added that he also felt hurt psychologically and emotionally for not being able to live up to people's expectations, as well as acting according to his positive image.
"Letting people down is my main trauma. I hate when I let people down."