Chris Rock’s younger brother, Kenny Rock, called out the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for its handling of Will Smith’s Oscars slap.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, the younger Rock sibling said that Smith should have his Oscar for Best Actor revoked over the incident, which he said he’s watched over 20 times.
“It eats at me watching it over and over again because you’ve seen a loved one being attacked and there’s nothing you can do about it,” he said. “Every time I’m watching the videos, it’s like a rendition that just keeps going over and over in my head. My brother was no threat to him and you just had no respect for him at that moment. You just belittled him in front of millions of people that watch the show.”
Shortly after the slap, Smith won Best Actor for his leading performance in King Richard. Kenny Rock thinks that not only should the award be revoked, but that Smith should be barred from attending future ceremonies. He also thinks the joke that led to the incident wasn’t a big deal.
“The joke was funny,” he said. “It wasn’t hilarious funny, but I know that if he knew that she had alopecia … he wouldn’t make a joke about that. But he didn’t know.”
Sources close to the situation previously said that Rock reportedly didn’t know about Jada’s condition. When Smith accepted the award, he apologized but did not mention Chris by name. However, his apology shared the next day directly addressed Rock
“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 added. “I don’t accept [his apology] because I don’t think it was genuine. … I think his publicist and the people that work under him probably advised him to do that.”
Last week, Smith resigned from the Academy. “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,” he said in a statement. “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.”
Kenny Rock isn’t the only Rock brother to criticize Smith over the incident, after Tony Rock also had a bone to pick with the actor. “If you think you gonna to walk up on this stage, this ain’t the motherfucking Oscars,” he said during a recent stand-up show. “And if you walk your ass up here, you ain’t nominated for shit but these motherfucking hands! Oh, we going to pop the rest of the year, n***a. Every time you see me do a show, pop!”
