Oscars Officials Considered Having Will Smith Leave the Ceremony Following the Viral Slap of Chris Rock

The Oscars were packed with many notable moments. Will Smith slapping Chris Rock on TV dominated every headline on Monday. In the third hour of the show, Chris Rock appeared to deliver an award for Best Documentary. Before running through the nominees, Rock got a few jokes off, and his final one was targeted toward Jada Pinkett Smith, highlighting her hair and asking was it for a sequel to G.I. Jane. The moment would lead to a slap from Smith to Rock. A new report from PEOPLE stated The Academy considered removing Will Smith from the ceremony.

“Having Will removed was definitely discussed seriously,” an industry source stated.

We are sure you know by now, but Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on the Oscars stage. Following the moment, Will Smith apologized to The Academy during his acceptance speech for his role as Richard Williams in King Richard. Following the viral moment, the Los Angeles Police Department issued a statement, revealing Rock will not press charges.

“LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program,” the statement read. “The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report.

“If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”

Diddy was the first presenter to hit the stage following Will Smith slapping Chris Rock. Diddy stated they would fix the issue like a family at The Gold Party after the ceremony, he later revealed to Page Six that it was solved at the Vanity Fair event.

“That’s not a problem. That’s over. I can confirm that,” Diddy said. “It’s all love, they’re brothers.”

Page Six also notes Rock and Smith agreed to work out their issues after the ceremony.