Denzel Washington is speaking out about his role in Will Smith's Oscars slap.
Soon after Will Smith made the decision to get up on stage at the 2022 Oscars and slap
Chris Rock across the face over a joke, Washington was one of the first people to console the
actor.
Along with fellow Hollywood stars Bradley Cooper and Tyler Perry, Smith was comforted
by the trio as the rest of the audience in the room was still trying to process what
had gone down.
But not everyone seemed to be as understanding.
Oscars co-hosts Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer both said that they were still feeling traumatized
over the slap, while comedian Kathy Griffin wrote on Twitter, "Now we all have to worry
about who wants to be the next Will Smith in comedy clubs and theaters."
Alec Baldwin also chimed in on the matter and said that the Oscars has turned into the
"Jerry Springer Show."
But if there's one person that everyone wants to hear from, it's Washington, and thankfully,
he's finally broken his silence about the slap that made him get out of his chair on
Oscars night.
While appearing at pastor T.D.
Jakes' annual International Leadership Summit, Denzel Washington said that he's doing the
one thing that he can following Will Smith's onstage slap against Chris Rock: He's praying
about it.
The "Tragedy of Macbeth" star talked about Smith during the April 2nd panel discussion,
saying, quote, "for whatever reason, the devil got a hold of him that night."
Explaining that he's not the kind of person to just sit aside during a tense moment like
that, Washington said that he's been dealing with the situation through "prayer."
While he didn't go into detail about what he said to Smith that night, Washington did
say,
"Who are we to condemn?
I don't know all the ins and outs of this situation, but I know the only solution was
prayer, the way I saw it, the way I see it."
That said, this wasn't the first time that Washington offered Smith some sound advice.
In an interview with People a month before the Oscars, Smith said that he's always appreciated
Washington lifting him up during times in need.
He said,
"We've spent a lot of time together.
So we've been talking, he's always been a mentor for me and he grabbed me and he said,
'This is your year.'"
In other words, everyone could use someone like Washington in their lives, right?
Denzel Washington is far from the only star to weigh in on the controversy.
Jim Carrey shared his own take about Will Smith's dramatic moment.
While he sharply criticized Smith for his violence, he also said he believed the actor
had more going on in his mind than people may have realized.
Carrey said in an appearance on CBS Mornings,
"[The slap] came out of nowhere because Will has something going on inside him that's frustrated.
I wish him the best.
I have nothing against Will Smith.
He's done great things, but that was not a good moment.
It cast a shadow over everyone's shining moment last night."
Then there were those who were just over the whole thing.
One of those?
Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe.
Radcliffe ironically made headlines for trying to avoid talking about the incident during
an appearance on Good Morning Britain.
He said,
"I'm just so already dramatically bored of hearing people's opinions about it that I
just don't want to be another opinion adding to it."
Will Smith has publicly apologized for the incident, sharing his regret during his emotional
Best Actor acceptance speech during the Oscars ceremony and then again in a statement posted
to Instagram.
But that hasn't stopped the consequences from coming back to bite him.
Will stepped down from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on April 1st, saying
in a statement, in part,
"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."
But just because he's apologized doesn't mean that Will is off the hook.
The Academy had already started disciplinary proceedings against the actor, with a decision
on his fate set to be decided on April 18th.
It was initially reported that he could be expelled or suspended, though it's unclear
what his punishment could be in the wake of his resignation.
The Academy confirmed it would still be pressing ahead and had accepted Will's resignation.
As for what Chris Rock has had to say about it all?
He broke his silence during a comedy show on March 30th, asking fans in attendance,
"How was your weekend?"
He continued to address the elephant in the room, saying,
"I'm still processing what happened, so at some point, I'll talk about [it].
It'll be serious.
It'll be funny, but right now I'm going to tell some jokes."
Check out one of our newest videos right here!
Plus, even more Nicki Swift videos about the latest celebrity scandals are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.