Comedians Rally Around Chris Rock, Express Concern About Violence Towards Comics: “Now We All Have To Worry”

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“Stand-up comics are very adept at handling hecklers,” tweeted Mark Hamill last night after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars, “violent physical assault…not so much.”Hamill’s tweet drew the distinction between speech and action that many have continued to drive home as the comedy community (mostly) rallies around Rock.

Howard Stern said on his SiriusXM show this morning, “You don’t hit people over speech, certainly not at the Academy Awards, and Will Smith’s got to contain himself.”Reactions to the slap that stunned the Oscars — when Will Smith bounded on stage and struck comedian Chris Rock over a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith, seem mostly to come down decidedly for, as one comedian puts it, Team Rock.Kathy Griffin was among the first to speak out strongly, expressing a concern that many comedians echoed. “Let me tell you something,” Griffin tweeted, “it’s a very bad practice to walk up on stage and physically assault a Comedian.

Now we all have to worry about who wants to be the next Will Smith in comedy clubs and theaters.”Rob Schneider, a frequent co-star of Rock’s, wrote:“There’s never an excuse for violence.

Ever. Ever Ever Ever Ever Ever Ever Ever Ever Ever”Oscars TV Review: Will Smith’s Stunning Slap Turns Struggling Show Into Stunning SpectacleComedian Hal Sparks also expressed concern that Smith’s action might have “green lit a lot of violence” toward comedians.“Somebody in #willsmith’s circle needs to tell him that there is no way what he did tonight won’t result in a comedian somewhere getting beat up or killed.