The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, is the annual award ceremony for the film industry, and this years will be remembered for years to come. With categories like Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director, films from the latest year are recognized for their hard work and creativity. 

The 94th Academy Awards was held on March 27, 2022, and hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes. It is an exceptional honor to be nominated, and the 2022 Oscars saw many talented faces. Among those was Will Smith who, not only made headlines by winning Best Actor and Best Picture, stole the world’s attention with his shocking altercation with comedian and actor, Chris Rock. 

Rock was presenting the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature when he made a joke about Will Smiths’ wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, being in “G.I. Jane,” presumably because of her shaved head. Jada suffers from alopecia areata, an autoimmune disorder that results in heavy hair loss. 

Smith then walked onto the stage and slapped Chris Rock square across the face. After he was seated, Smith proceeded to yell twice at Rock, “Keep my wife’s name out of your [explicitive] mouth!” As this was now clear not to be some sort of a joke, Rock seemed a bit shaken but went on with presenting the Oscar. 

“That was the greatest night in the history of television,” Rock said after Smith was done. 

Spinnaker polled students on social media, asking their opinions on the altercation between Rock and Smith.

Samira Yssa, a first-year studying Health Administration, commented on the altercation: “Nothing should result in violence, but that ‘joke’ was 100% uncalled for.”  

Another UNF student commented their opinion regarding the situation, “He suffered the consequences of his actions and Will Smith was completely valid to do that.”  

Later in the ceremony, Will Smith won Best Actor and teared up during his acceptance speech and apologized to the Academy and his fellow nominees, omitting Rock. “Love will make you do crazy things,” he said. 

Since that night, there has been no shortage of opinions about what went on between Smith and Rock, including concerns about the Academy’s tolerance of such violence being broadcasted. Their Twitter account posted a brief statement after the show. 

The Academy does not condone violence of any form.

Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world.

— The Academy (@TheAcademy) March 28, 2022

The following day, on Monday, Smith publicly apologized to both Chris Rock and the Academy with a statement posted to his Instagram account. 

 

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A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith)

The possibility of consequences for either Smith or Rock’s actions and comments have yet to be discussed, but one thing is for certain: the 94th Academy Awards has earned its place as one of the most memorable. 

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