Just when you thought the Oscars were going to be another boring wokefest, the unthinkable
happened.
Will Smith smacked Chris Rock right in the kisser after he made a joke about his wife
Jada.
Some say this was staged, some say it wasn't, some say it was just a joke that did not grant
such a reaction, but... you're about to find out what really happened.
Welcome back, my body language buddies!
my name is Jesús Enrique Rosas, I'm the Body Language Guy, and it would be great if you
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Well, for starters, it's no secret that the Academy Awards viewership has been in a steady
decline over more than a handful of years, so you might think that the organizers would
do anything to get that spark of excitement back.
That's why is understandable why so many people think this was staged.
That this was just for ratings.
But no matter how creative or outrageous you want to be to resuscitate a show that's just
glorified propaganda, there are certain points to that theory that just don't fit.
First, let's do a recap of the events.
Chris Rock was on stage, presenting a best documentary feature, when he made a joke on
Jada Pinkett Smith, saying that he couldn't wait for G.I.
Jane 2, referring to the 1997 Demi Moore movie in which she plays a recruit and has to shave
her head.
The joke in itself was no big deal.
It could have been worse.
He could have said Alien 3.
But the problem here is that Jada suffers from alopecia, a condition that makes you
lose your hair.
She has been fighting that for many years, and that's one of the reasons she usually
has her hair really short.
Now, this is where the internet begins to dissent.
Because I saw comments of people saying that well, losing your hair should be no big deal.
There are much worse things that can happen to you.
And that's true.
But alopecia also has psychological effects on the person, because we associate healthy
hair with general health.
That's part of our biological programming.
And that psychological effect on women is much more devastating to their self perception.
But no matter how you look at it, making fun of someone's health struggles is really bad
taste.
Maybe Rock did not know about Jada's condition, which makes it all the more uncomfortable.
But you know that Will and Jada are not that good at keeping their life private, and that's
why we know about their entanglements.
Jada has been talking about her struggle with hair loss for quite a few years, so I find
it a bit of a stretch that Rock did not know about that, since anyone can find it with
a ten second Google search.
It's interesting to notice that before saying the joke, Rock first addressed Jada saying,
"I love you", like trying to soften what he was about to say next.
That gives the idea that he was aware that his joke could land the wrong way.
Now, many people made a very good remark.
That Will's reaction was really different from Jada's.
Will was still...
let's say laughing, but Jada did not like it.
And so, the claim is that Will did not stood up on his own, but stood up thanks to Jada's
reaction.
Well, maybe Will at that moment thought that he could just laugh it out.
Another option would have been to pull a Tommy Lee Jones not impressed watching Kristen Wiig
and Will Ferrel.
But there's a condition about being human that most probably you can relate.
Maybe someone makes fun of you, and you have no problem in letting it slip.
Making no big deal of it.
But it's natural human behavior that if someone makes fun of one of your loved ones, you're
gonna be ten times as upset as if the joke was directed to you.
So definitely, it was realizing Jada's reaction that just made him snap.
And just to be clear, I think nobody disagrees on the fact that if somebody makes fun of
your wife, or husband, or children in public, you have all the right to show them manners.
And yes, there are moments that there is no other way than showing those manners a la
Kingsman, but what happened next was not that elegant.
Will stood up, walked right up to Rock and slapped him without warning.
This is the moment that you realize this was not scripted.
Because if it was planned, it would have been even more outrageous.
Maybe a punch to the gut or to the face.
Of course, rehearsed in a way to look real.
When I say outrageous, I mean like that Sacha Baron Cohen, totally staged skit, with the
woman on the wheelchair that never gets old.
The final confirmation that this was not on script, was Will cursing at Rock after sitting
down.
There is no way the MF word would have gotten clearance for national television.
If anyone ever finds that this was done on purpose, the Academy would be fined all the
way to Mississipi.
By the way, why was Will slightly smiling when he had just slapped Rock?
Well, I bet that if you go physical to put someone in their place, and you get away with
it, you will feel good about it, right?
But back to those screams.
Both Will's words and body language, signal that he was really unhinged at that moment.
And that's what is so disturbing.
He went from a diplomatic laughter, trying to let Rock just finish his skit, to full
gangsta mode.
Yelling in public.
Totally losing control.
Now, I must say that at first I was OK with Will doing what he did, and let me explain
why.
Not in the senseless screaming, that was surely painful to watch, but in the slap itself.
But then, I had second thoughts, precisely when I spotted his change from calm and collected
to batshit crazy.
That's not a sane reaction.
That man is not well.
Yes, it's no wonder that if someone makes a loved one feel bad, you are going to have
an emotional reaction.
But there are many ways to come back at someone, especially when you have the idea that this
is going to be YOUR Oscar night, for Denzel's sake!
As many people pointed out on Twitter, it would have been great if Will had controlled
his emotions and then include something regarding Jada's fight with alopecia during his acceptance
speech.
It would have been lightyears more elegant and a far more devastating blow for Rock.
But then, we arrive at a conundrum.
Wether if it's the slap, or a remark during your acceptance speech, you will be signaling
to millions that you could not resist reacting to a vanilla joke about your wife's hair.
And let's be honest.
Jada would have a blast doing a reboot of G.I.
Jane, which at the same time has a great message on women empowerment.
It's strange that since Jada has been very public about this struggle, she had such a
reaction from that remark.
So, no.
Will Smith let his impulses win the day.
THIS night should be remembered as the night that he took that really well deserved award
home.
But instead, he became the real life equivalent of that Batman and Robin meme.
Now, I have to say something about some remarks on the lines of 'violence is never an option'.
Granted, violence here was absolutely out of the question, and instead of making a statement,
Will Smith just made a fool of himself and his family.
That's what I always mention about attracting the wrong kind of attention.
But bear with me on this.
For both men and women, violence should always be an option, because the real virtue is having
the option of violence, but have the self control of NOT using it.
Anyone can say, "I'm all for peace, I would never use violence to solve things, there
is always another way", if they cannot use violence when the shit really hits the fan.
Because otherwise, you're a 'peaceful person' because you have no other option.
What's the virtue on that?
This is the kind of topics that, besides the initial shock and then barrage of memes, makes
up for a very interesting discussion, and I'm sure you have your own opinion on what
just happened, so I'll be glad to read about it in the comments.
If you want to refine your observation skills, all you have to do is download my 100+ body
language tips, right in the description of this video.
My name is Jesús Enrique Rosas and it will always be a pleasure, my body language buddies!
Much Love, and Bliss.