Chris Rock’s brother, Kenny Rock, recently explained why he is not accepting Will Smith’s apology after Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars.
After slapping Chris Rock following a G.I. Jane joke, Smith won the Oscar for Best Actor and offered an apology at the time although he didn’t directly mention Chris Rock.
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During his acceptance speech, Smith said, “I want to apologize to the Academy. I want to apologize to all of my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment and I’m not — I’m not crying for winning an award. It’s not about winning an award for me. It’s about being able to shine light on all of the people: Tim, and Trevor, and Zack, and Saniyaa, and Demi, and Aunjanue, and the entire cast and crew of King Richard, Venus and Serena, and the entire Williams family.”
“Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father, just like they said. I look like the crazy father just like they said about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things,” he went on.
“To my mother, a lot of this moment is really complicated for me, but to my mother, she didn’t want to come out, she had her knitting friends, she has a knitting crew, she’s in Philly watching,” Smith said.
“Being able to love and care for my mother and my family, my wife — I’m taking up too much time — thank you for this honor. Thank you for this moment. And thank you on behalf of Richard and Oracene and the entire Williams family. Thank you. I hope the Academy invites me back. Thank you,” he concluded.
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Smith would then issue an apology via his Instagram account. He began, “Violence in all its forms is poisonous and destructive. My behavior at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally.”
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be,” he continued. “There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness. ”
Smith went on writing, “I would also like to apologize to the Academy, the producers of the show, all the attendees and everyone watching around the world.”
“I would like to apologize to the Williams Family and my King Richard Family. I deeply regret that my behavior has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us,” he stated.
He concluded, “I am a work in progress.”
Smith would offer another statement when he resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.
According to Variety, Smith said, “The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and global audiences at home.”
“I betrayed the trust of the Academy. I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken,” the Suicide Squad actor added.
He 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.”
The actor then concluded saying, “Change takes time and I am committed to doing the work to ensure that I never again allow violence to overtake reason.”
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Kenny Rock explained why he was not accepting Smith’s apology, “No, I don’t accept it because I don’t think it was genuine.”
He added, “I think his publicist and the people that work under him probably advised him to do that.”
He would also tell the Los Angeles Times, “I might have looked at it differently had he initially apologized when he got on the stage and cried and accepted the award, but he didn’t, so, right there that tells me that it is something else.”
Kenny Rock also believes that Smith shouldn’t have even accepted the Best Actor award because he should have been escorted out of the building. “He should have been escorted out of there,” he stated.
“I hold them accountable for that. He could have went up there and did anything you wanted to my brother. It could have been much worse than what he did,” he elaborated.
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Kenny Rock is not the only sibling of Chris Rock who is not accepting Will Smith’s apology. Tony Rock was asked on Twitter if he approved of the apology. He responded simply writing, “No.”
Tony Rock would also address the slap in a recent comedy show saying, “You gonna hit my mother f***ing brother because your b**** gave you a side eye?”
He continued, “Oh there’s a lot of Rock brothers, y’all aint know, there’s a lot of Rock brothers. It’s 10 of us, mofo, you gotta see all the Rock brothers. You like, ‘I didn’t even know that n***** was a Rock brother. That n***** was a Rock brother? That’s a Rock brother?”
“I ain’t gonna start the show like that, but I just wanna let y’all know that s*** ain’t gonna ride. That s*** ain’t gonna ride, n*****. I don’t got a lot of s*** to lose, n*****,” he said.
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Rock has remained relatively quiet about the assault. However, he did briefly address it a recent comedy show saying, “I don’t have a bunch of s*** about what happened, so if you came to hear that, I have a whole show I wrote before this weekend.”
He added, “I’m still kind of processing what happened. So, at some point I’ll talk about that s***. And it will be serious and funny.”
What do you make of Kenny Rock not accepting the apology? Do you believe Smith’s apology was genuine? What do you make of him holding the Oscars accountable?