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On Saturday, Chris Rock was at the center of Netflix’s first-ever live event as the streamer broadcast his new standup special, Chris Rock: Selective Outrage.
During the event, Rock obviously addressed getting slapped in the face by Will Smith at last year’s Academy Awards ceremony and his comments about Smith went massively viral.
Chris rock is not holding back about Will Smith and Jada . This is just too much. https://t.co/RTxjIsflgq
— Don Salmon (@dijoni) March 5, 2023
One of Rock’s comments about the incident, in particular, seems to be striking a chord within his own community, though.
“A lot of people go, ‘Chris, how come you didn’t do nothing back?’ Because I’ve got parents! That’s why. Because I was raised. You know what my parents taught me? Don’t fight in front of white people!” Rock said.
Clearly, not everyone seems to be in Rock’s corner:
Chris Rock makes comedy for white people who have a Black friend.
— Kyla Jenée Lacey (@Kyla_Lacey) March 5, 2023
Marlon Wayans verbalizing what many have been saying about Chris Rock getting slapped💀pic.twitter.com/J4doVzveY5
— ⚜️TV Fanatic⚜️ (@TvKhaleesi) March 6, 2023
https://twitter.com/stopolive/status/1632410411084533763
One clip that has been brought up in recent days is a decade-or-so-old video of him laughing as disgraced comedian Louis C.K. freely uses the N-word in his presence.
https://twitter.com/MsPackyetti/status/1632421217129865218
https://twitter.com/WhosTYE/status/1632404681061195777
The most Chris Rock thing about all of this is him screaming that you don’t fight in front of white people but not even considering what it means to make jokes about a BW and her hair in front of white people
— David Dennis Jr. (@DavidDTSS) March 5, 2023
Now that almost a year has passed since the slap, it’s clear that neither Rock nor Smith has come away from that unfortunately historic night looking any better.
With this year’s Academy Awards set to be held next Sunday, March 12, it’ll be fascinating to see how the show addresses the infamous incident between Smith and Rock, especially considering the fact that perpetual third-place late-night host Jimmy Kimmel — who has made headlines of his own in recent days — is hosting the show.
At the time of this writing, Smith — who famously told Rock to “keep his wife’s name out of his mouth” and is serving a 10-year ban from the Academy Awards as a result of the slap — has yet to respond to Rock’s latest jokes about him and his family.
RELATED: Will Smith Appears To Crack A Joke On TikTok About Slapping Chris Rock At The Academy Awards