Before the slap. Will Smith and Chris Rock‘s altercation at the 2022 Oscars made tons of headlines, but the duo’s history began well before the comedian’s joke about Jada Pinkett Smith.The Saturday Night Live alum, 57, made a cameo appearance on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1995, playing Maurice, a famous actor, and Maurice’s sister, Jasmine.
Rock was already a successful stand-up comedian at that point, but the Ali actor, 53, was just starting to become a household name.Pinkett Smith, 50, also met her future husband on the set of Fresh Prince.
In 1994, she auditioned to play Lisa Wilkes, the girlfriend of his character (also named Will Smith). The Magic Mike XXL actress lost the role to Nia Long, but she later gained a spouse — she and Smith tied the knot in December 1997.
The couple went on to welcome son Jaden Smith, now 23, and daughter Willow Smith, now 21. (Will also shares son Trey, 29, with ex-wife Sheree Zampino.)While Rock and the Men in Black star haven’t worked together since Fresh Prince, the Grown Ups actor and Pinkett Smith collaborated for the first time in 2005.
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