Oscars 2022: The Academy says they do not condone any form of violence after Will Smith, Chris Rock’s onstage exchange

Will Smith won his first Academy Award today, but the actor is in the news and social media for all the wrong reasons. In a moment of chaos, the actor walked on stage and attacked Chris Rock. 

Chris Rock took the stage to present the award for Best Documentary, and made a joke at the expense of Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, which did not sit well with the actor. Will Smith walked on stage and smacked the comedian-actor across his face. 

The Academy has now broken their silence over the incident and said that they condone any act of violence. “The Academy does not condone violence of any form.” they wrote.

The tweet from The Academy also celebrated the 94th Academy Awards winners for the moment of recognition they have received from around the world. 

“Jada, I love ya. G.I. Jane 2, can’t wait to see it,” Rock said with reference to Pinkett Smith’s appearance. Jada has been fighting alopecia, an auto-immune disorder, which causes hair loss by attacking hair follicles, publicly for a few years now. 

Fans and celebrities are also flocking to social media and Twitter to react to the incident and share their two cents. Daily Show host Trevor Noah, director Judd Apatow and Late-night host Conan O’Brien are a few big names who have reacted to the altercation. 

Following the incident, Will Smith also went on to win his first Oscar, winning Best Actor for his role in King Richard. The actor also apologised for his actions during his emotional acceptance speech.