Will Smith and Chris Rock full video

Will Smith has apologised to Chris Rock for slapping him during the Oscar telecast, saying his behaviour was "unacceptable" and that he had reached out to the comedian to discuss the incident but was told Rock wasn't ready.

"There is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment," Smith said in the video, which runs for almost six minutes and was posted online on Friday (US time).

"I am deeply remorseful and I'm trying to be remorseful without being ashamed of myself."

To Rock, he said: "I'm here whenever you're ready to talk."

In the video, Smith spoke directly to a camera, answering pre-selected questions about his behaviour at the March 27 Academy Awards, when he slapped presenter Rock after the comedian made a reference about the hairstyle of Jada Pinkett Smith, Smith's wife.

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Smith also apologised to Rock's family and especially his mother, Rosalie, who was horrified to see her son hurt.

She told US Weekly: "When he slapped Chris, he slapped all of us. He really slapped me."

Smith also apologised to Tony Rock, Chris' younger brother.

"I didn't realise how many people got hurt in that moment," Smith said.

Neither the apology or timing impressed crisis and PR expert Eric Schiffer, who called it "bizarre, strange and grossly over-rehearsed".

"It came across like he was doing a confessional in some closed room in a foreign country in order to escape the regime," said Mr Schiffer, chairman and CEO of Patriarch Equity and chairman of Reputation Management Consultants.

"It's just not the way to get out of the septic muck he put himself into because, once again, it started being about him and it's still about him."

In the video, Smith also apologised to his family "for the heat that I brought on all of us" and his fellow Oscar nominees to have "stolen and tarnished your moment".

He mentioned Questlove by name; it was the musician-director's documentary win for Summer of Soul (… Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) that was interrupted by the slap.

Rock was on stage to present the documentary award.

Smith also said his wife did nothing to encourage his slap.

"Jada had nothing to do with it," he said.

"I made a choice on my own."

Pinkett Smith has said that she has alopecia areata, a hair-loss condition.

Following the altercation, the motion picture academy banned Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years.

Smith apologised to Rock in a statement after the Oscars, saying he was "out of line and I was wrong".

"I'm sorry really isn't sufficient," Smith said in the video, adding that he is hurting because he hasn't lived up to fans' impressions.

"Disappointing people is my central trauma."

AP

Posted 29 Jul 2022Fri 29 Jul 2022 at 10:00pm, updated 29 Jul 2022Fri 29 Jul 2022 at 11:51pm

Months after the infamous 2022 Oscars ceremony, Will Smith has shared an apology video in which he discusses slapping Chris Rock.

In the clip, shared to YouTube, Smith addressed the comedian, whom Smith says has declined to speak with him directly.

See below for the actor’s full remarks from the five-minute video, in which he answered questions he’s been asked since the controversial incident occured.

Firstly, he was asked why he didn’t apologise to Rock on Oscars night when he accepted an award for his performance in King Richard.

“I was fogged out by that point,” he said. “It is all fuzzy. I’ve reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that, he’s not ready to talk. When he is, he will reach out. I will say to you, Chris, I apologise to you. My behavior was unacceptable and I am here whenever you are ready to talk. I want to apologise to Chris’s mother. I saw an interview, and that was one of the things I just didn’t realise – I wasn’t thinking – but how many people got hurt in that moment. I want to apologise to Chris’ mother.

“I want to apologise to Chris’s family, specifically Tony Rock. We had a great relationship. Tony Rock was my man. This is probably irreparable.

“I spent the last three months replaying and understanding the nuance and complexity of what happened in that moment. I’m not going to try to unpack all of that right now, but I can say to all of you, there is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment. No part of me that thinks that is the optimal way to handle a feeling of disrespect or insult.”

Will Smith as seen in the apology video

(YouTube / Will Smith)

Smith then addressed whether his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, who was the target of the joke that Will Smith reacted to, had asked her husband to “do something”.

“No,” he responded. “It’s like, I made a choice on my own, from my own experiences, from my history with Chris. Jada had nothing to do with it. I’m sorry, babe.I say sorry to my kids and my family for the heat that I brought on all of us. To all my fellow nominees, this is a community.

“I won because you voted for me, and it really breaks my heart to have stolen and tarnished your moment. I can still see Questlove’s eyes – it happened on Questlove’s award. It’s like ‘I’m sorry’ really isn’t sufficient.”

Lastly, Smith talked about how the night has affected him mentally over the past few months.

“Two things. One: disappointing people is my central trauma. I hate when I let people down, so it hurts me psychologically and emotionally that I didn’t live up to peoples’ image and impression of me.

“The work I am trying to do is –I am deeply remorseful and I’m trying to be remorseful without being ashamed of myself. I’m human and I made a mistake and I’m trying not to think of myself as a piece of s***. So I would say to those people, I know it was confusing. I know it was shocking. But I promise you, I am deeply devoted and committed to putting light and love and joy into the world.

Smith slaps Rock at the 2022 Oscars

(AFP via Getty Images)

“If you hang on, I promise we will be able to be friends again.”

Rock himself addressed the slap in a comedy set he performed earlier this week (24 July) in New Jersey.

Jada Pinkett Smith has also commented on the incident.