Tyler Perry Says Will Smith was ‘Devastated’ after the Oscars Slap!

Tyler Perry has reminisced about the events that followed Will Smith‘s memorable slap of Chris Rock at the Oscars in March. After the frightening occurrence, the 52-year-old filmmaker, who was seen on stage with the 53-year-old Smith, wanted to make it clear that he was ‘deescalating’ the situation, not soothing the A-lister, as he spoke about the aftermath.

The American actor spoke onstage with Gayle King on Monday as part of the Tribeca Film Festival’s Directors Series in New York City, where he covered various issues, including the infamous slap. ‘There’s a difference between soothing and deescalating,’ the A Madea Homecoming star stated of his conversation with Will. And I got up early to check on Chris to see if he was okay. It’s been tough to be friends with both of them.’

The producer wanted to emphasize that it was a difficult time for everyone present, that Chris should be commended for his handling of the situation, and that Will should also be understood. ‘Trust me, as hard as it was for the rest of us in the room, it was far more agonizing for Chris, who was a true champion in how he handled it,’ he continued.

‘However, I want you to know that something happened that was as traumatic for [Will].’ That is not an acceptable excuse. He was entirely incorrect in his actions. But something prompted him, which is very out of character for him.‘

Tyler was in attendance on Hollywood’s biggest night to remember Sidney Poitier during the In Memoriam section, when he stated that the heinous occurrence was “wrong in no uncertain terms,” and that he made sure to tell Will about it. ‘And I’ll tell you, he was crushed when we approached him.’ He couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw what had transpired. He couldn’t believe he’d managed to pull it off.

‘I’m gazing at this dude, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘What are you doing?’ ‘This is your night,’ says the narrator. And to get to this point, winning an Oscar, was one of the pinnacle achievements of his career that he had aspired to for so long, and to have something like that happen… I believe he is thinking about what occurred and trying to figure out what happened.‘

Tyler went on to remark that he feels Will’s early trauma played a significant impact on how things turned out. ‘Because, as I’ll tell you, I just finished reading his autobiography, and there’s this scene where he talks about not being able to defend his mother [as a child].’ That feeling is familiar to me; it gives me the goosebumps just thinking about it.

‘I understand how it feels to be a man and worry about the small child. And if you don’t deal with the trauma immediately soon, it will resurface as you get older, at the most inconvenient and dreadful times. Will is someone I know. ‘I’m familiar with him.‘

This comes only weeks after Will’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, spoke out about the slap at the Oscars for the first time, stating she hopes the two men can ‘heal’ and reconcile following the horrible occurrence.

Smith publicly apologized to Rock and resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, removing him from future Oscar voting. The actor, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of “King Richard” in 2022, was excluded from all Oscar-related events for ten years in April due to the attack.

Follow Featured Biography for more celebrity reads.

• Celebrity News