“Be alert”: Denzel Washington Made Will Smith Apologize To Chris Rock After Humiliating Him On Stage

Denzel Washington is known to be a man of good character who always tries to take his stand for what is right. Even the roles he plays in the movies are a portrayal of this character of his. He is also a great mentor and gives good advice to his friends and everyone else who might be in need of it.

One such instance of Denzel Washington giving valuable advice was when the infamous slapgate happened between Will Smith and Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars. Smith revealed the advice he received from Washington during the acceptance of the Best Actor Award for his role in King Richard.

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Denzel Washington Looked Out for Will Smith

From every single person at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles to the hundreds of thousands of viewers from around the world, Will Smith slapping Chris Rock had left everyone shocked and at a loss for words. However, it didn’t take long for Smith to realize his mistake as he was later seen wiping away tears while some of his friends such as Tyler Perry, Bradley Cooper, and Denzel Washington tried to console him.

Will Smith later let everyone know the wise advice he had gotten from the American Gangster. Smith said: “Denzel said to me a few minutes ago, he said, ‘At your highest moment, be careful – that’s when the devil comes for you.” This advice resonated with Peter’s in the New Testament of the Bible. It goes: “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8)

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Rage is an emotion that often clouds people’s judgment of the wrong and the right. This is exactly what happened to Will Smith when comedian Chris Rock cracked an insensitive joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head owing to a medical condition called alopecia which causes hair loss.

Will Smith Apologized for Slapping Chris Rock

Committing mistakes is a part of being a human being but what’s important here is that people learn from their mistakes. Although Chris Rock making fun of Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head might have been morally wrong, Will Smith slapping the comedian while he was on stage in front of so many people certainly wasn’t the best move. Fortunately, the Men in Black star realized that and apologized. During his acceptance speech, Smith said:

“I know to do what we do, you’ve got to be able to take abuse, you’ve got to be able to have people talk crazy about you. In this business, you’ve got to be able to have people disrespecting you and you’ve got to smile and you’ve got to pretend like that’s okay.”

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The Independence Day actor apologized to the academy as well as his fellow nominees in the same speech. The very next day, Smith issued an apology on Instagram in which he publicly apologized to Chris Rock. Following the incident, the actor resigned from the Academy before he was banned by the Academy for 10 years.

Source: Crosswalk