Denzel Washington Explains Why He Comforted Will Smith Following The Actor’s Shameful Altercation With Chris Rock At The Oscars
Josh Berger
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Renowned actor Denzel Washington has recently disclosed what he and actor Tyler Perry told With Smith during the commercial break following the shameful altercation with comedian Chris Rock at this year’s past Academy Awards show, revealing that they prayed with him.
Source: Jamie Foxx Interviews Denzel Washington || OFF SCRIPT, YouTube
“There’s a saying when the devil ignores you, then you know you’re doing something wrong,” Washington said during a livestream hosted by The Wrap this past Saturday.
The actor went on, “The devil goes, ‘Oh no leave him alone, he’s my favorite’ (laughs). Conversely, when the devil comes at you, maybe it’s because he’s trying to do something right. And for whatever reason the devil got a hold of him that night.”
While Washington did not reveal exactly what it was that he told Smith, he did say that after the actor slapped Chris Rock, the “only solution was prayer.”
Source: The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021), A24
“Fortunately there were people there, not just me but others [like] Tyler Perry came immediately right over there with me,” Washington explained. “Some prayers. I don’t wanna say what we talked about, but there but for the grace of God go any of us.”
The actor then pondered, “Who are we to condemn? I don’t know all the ins and outs of this situation, but I know the only solution was prayer, the way I saw it, the way I see it.”
Source: The Oscars, ABC
Denzel Washington has been very open about his Christian faith, and has revealed in the past that his mission is to help others in this life, so it is very much in character for him to step forward to comfort Smith during the star-studded event’s commercial break.
In December of last year, Washington told The New York Times’ Maureen Dowd that he was “more interested in directing because I’m more interested in helping others,” adding, “What I do, what I make, what I made — all of that — is that going to help me on the last day of my life? It’s about, Who have you lifted up? Who have we made better?”
Denzel Washington plays Troy Maxson in Fences from Paramount Pictures. Directed by Denzel Washington from a screenplay by August Wilson.
Following the infamous slap at the Oscars, Will Smith was awarded the Oscar for Best Actor for his role as Richard Williams, the father of professional tennis champions Serena and Venus Williams, in the biopic King Richard.
Smith did mention Denzel Washington in his acceptance speech, recalling that his fellow actor said to him that “‘At your highest moment, be careful, that’s when the devil comes for you,’” stating, “I want to be a vessel for love.”
“I want to say ‘thank you’ to Venus and Serena and the entire Williams family for trusting me with your story. I want to be an ambassador of that kind of love and care,” the recently-awarded actor added.
Source: King Richard (2021), Warner Bros. Entertainment
RELATED: Will Smith Issues Apology After Slapping Chris Rock At Oscars, Tim Allen Shares His Thoughts
Smith would also go on to apologise for the scene he made, declaring, “I want to apologize to the Academy, I want to apologize to all my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment and I’m not crying for winning an award. It’s not about winning an award for me, it’s about being able to shine a lot on all the people…and the entire cast and crew of King Richard and Venus and Serena and the entire Williams family.”
“Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father, just like they said about Richard Williams!” he concluded, but not before attempting to justify physically assaulting Chris Rock, asserting that “love will make you do crazy things.”
Even more recently, Smith issued a statement wherein he declared that he had “betrayed the trust of the Academy” in slapping Chris Rock at the awards ceremony, announcing his full resignation from the organisation.
Source: The Oscars via Variety Twitter
“I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken,” claimed Smith’s statement.
The actor continued, “I want to put the focus back on those who deserve attention for their achievements and allow the Academy to get back to the incredible work it does to support creativity and artistry in film.”
“Change takes time and I am committed to doing the work to ensure that I never again allow violence to overtake reason,” Smith would later declare.
Source: ABC, YouTube
RELATED: “Woke” Activists Blame Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock On “White Supremacy”
President of the Academy, David Rubin, accepted Smith’s resignation, issuing a statement that said, “We have received and accepted Mr. Will Smith’s immediate resignation from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. We will continue to move forward with our disciplinary proceedings against Mr. Smith for violations of the Academy’s Standards of Conduct, in advance of our next scheduled board meeting on April 18.”
Comedian Chris Rock addressed the altercation with Will Smith during a stand-up comedy event, disclosing, “I’m still kind of processing what happened. So, at some point I’ll talk about that s–t. And it will be serious and funny.”
Source: Andy Witchger, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Reports have also revealed that the comedian is not pressing charges against Smith. This information came from the Los Angeles Police Department, as obtained by The Guardian senior editor Lois Beckett.
“LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program. The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report,” reportedly read the statement.
It concluded, “If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”
Source: Lois Beckett, Twitter
The above information would later be confirmed by the Oscars producer Will Packer, who told Variety, “They were saying, you know, this is battery, was a word they used in that moment. [LAPD] said, ‘We will go get him. We are prepared. We’re prepared to get him right now. You can press charges, we can arrest him,’”
“They were laying out the options. And as they were talking, Chris was — he was being very dismissive of those options. He was like, ‘No, no, no, I’m fine.’ And even to the point where I said, ‘Rock, let them finish.’ The LAPD officers finished laying out what his options were and they said, ‘Would you like us to take any action?’ And he said no. He said no,” Packer added.
Source: Chris Rock: Tamborine (2018), Netflix
What do you make of Washington’s comments regarding the altercation between Smith and Rock at the Oscars? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below or on social media.
NEXT: Will Smith Movies Reportedly Up In The Air At Netflix And Sony After His Assault On Chris Rock
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