Last year, Kevin Hart stepped down from his Oscars hosting gig after homophobic remarks from his past resurfaced. The comments were made both on Twitter, and in his 2010 comedy special Seriously Funny. Initially, the Jumanji star didn't apologize for his insensitive material, defiantly appearing on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, where he said he had already apologized. "I know who I am. I don't have a homophobic bone in my body. I know I've addressed it, I know I've apologized," he said at the time. "I know that within my apologies, I've taken 10 years to put my apology to work."
But in a new interview with Men's Health, Hart reflected on the situation and admitted he could have handled it a lot better. He explained that he didn't truly understand the controversy at the time, until he spoke with some of his friends, notably with queer comedians Wanda Sykes and Ellen DeGeneres.
"With the whole Oscars thing, there was a big gap between what I thought the problem was versus what the problem really was," he said. "I got ten years where I made sure not to joke or play in the way that I did back then because it was a problem. I don’t care if you’re gay or not gay. I’m a people person. I’m going to love you regardless. It wasn’t until close friends like Wanda Sykes, Lee Daniels and Ellen DeGeneres talked to me and explained what they didn’t hear me say that I understood. Then I was like, 'Oh shit, I did fuck up.'"
Elsewhere in the interview, Hart discussed the recovery process following his car crash in September. Ultimately, he said the incident allowed him to appreciate his family more. "Now I’m doing a lot of little things that are important," he continued. "I’m sitting with the kids before and after dinner. We are doing Taco Tuesdays, Mexican-food Thursdays, Chinese-food Sundays. We got movie night twice a week. Now I’m walking my fucking dog. I’m picking up dog shit."
