Will Smith only ‘saving his reputation’, still hasn’t ‘personally’ apologised to Chris Rock

Chris Rock did not receive a personal apology from Will Smith after the infamous 2022 Oscars slap.

“Will did call Chris last year after the Oscars, but Chris didn’t pick up. And they haven’t spoken since,” a source who knows both men told Page Six exclusively.

“Chris was open for a call until Will made his public apologies, and then all of those Red Table Talk discussions,” the insider continued, referring to Jada Pinkett Smith’s Facebook Watch show, on which she once shared her hope that her husband and his onetime friend could “reconcile.”

The Concussion actor, 54, did apologise for the incident on his Instagram page twice. In the first one he wrote a statement the next day of the Oscars in March 2022 and then shared an emotional video another in July of the same year.

“Will’s two public apologies were all about saving his own reputation,” the source said. “Will has not apologised to Chris Rock in person — and Chris isn’t expecting it.”

The comedian, 58, did a Netflix comedy special recently in which he took multiple jabs at Smith for the Oscars slap and his wife Jada. Now that he has said his piece, he’s ready to move on.

“This was closure for Chris,” the insider shared. “He wanted to do that in a safe space.”

Smith, who won Best Actor for King Richard moments after hitting Rock onstage, resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in response to backlash he received.

The Academy subsequently banned the movie star from attending its events for 10 years.

“We want to express our deep gratitude to Mr Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances,” the organisation said in April 2022. “We also want to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their poise and grace during our telecast.”

[via]