Will Smith Must Return His Oscar to Restore the Award’s Honor (Guest Column)

Gilbert Gottfried showed support for Chris Rock in his final days. Gottfried, one of the most recognizable voices in show business, died after a long illness on Tuesday. He was 67.

DJ Jazzy Jeff has become the latest artist to wade into the Will Smith Oscars slap debate, defending the actor for his “human” reaction.Last month, Smith struck Chris Rock on-stage during the Academy Awards ceremony following a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head. Following numerous apologies over the incident, Smith resigned from the Academy and described his actions as “shocking, painful, and inexcusable,” before being banned from the Oscars for a decade.Since the incident, Smith has been condemned by a number of celebrities including A$AP Rocky, Janet Hubert, Jim Carrey, Amy Schumer and Zoë Kravitz, while the likes of Denzel Washington and UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak have supported him.Speaking at a live event in Chicago, Jazzy Jeff – who formed the duo DJ Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince with Smith in 1986 and won two Grammys for ‘Parents Just Don’t Understand’ and ‘Summertime’ before they split in 1994 – defended his former bandmate.“Don’t get it twisted that it was something he was proud of.

Gallery: 'Being a celebrity is. . . dumb!' Did you know these 10 celebrities HATE being famous? (BANG Showbiz)Earlier this month, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences banned Will from the Oscars for 10 years following the incident.

Gilbert Gottfried stood up for a longtime friend in his final social media post just two weeks before his death.

An unconventional relationship. Jada Pinkett Smith‘s dating life made major headlines when August Alsina added himself into the narrative amid the actress’ decades-long marriage to Will Smith.

The man has jokes. Trevor Noah isn’t done discussing Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 94th annual Academy Awards — and this time, the Daily Show host got in some jabs about the King Richard star’s punishment from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

DJ Jazzy Jeff feels for Will Smith.

controversial Oscars slap on March 27.The “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” actor, 53, smacked Chris Rock during the 94th Academy Awards last month. Jazzy Jeff, 57, held a Closed Sessions Legend Conversation at Dorian’s Through the Record Shop in Chicago last week where he opened up about his friend and old collaborator’s eruption onstage.“Don’t get it twisted that it was something he was proud of. It was a lapse in judgment, you know?” the songwriter began.

Willow Smith, 21, is “focusing” on her music and not bothered by Saturday Night Live‘s recent comedy sketches about her father. The singer gave an incredible performance along with Camila Cabello for the duo’s song “Psychofreak” on the April 9th episode of the live series, which took place one week after the show included several comedic scenes about Will Smith‘s infamous slap at the Oscars.

Winning! Maddie & Tae’s Maddie Marlow stole the 2022 CMT Music Awards show with her heartfelt acceptance speech — as partner Tae Dye watched from home — on Monday, April 11.

Shortly after Will Smith, 53, walked on stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock, 57, in the head for a joke he made about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, 50, at this year’s Oscars, LAPD said that Chris would not be pressing charges against Will — a decision that left many stunned. However, just because Chris did not choose to press charges against the fallen Best Actor winner when the incident occurred does NOT mean that he can’t still pursue such action, as Los Angeles-based criminal attorney Lara Yeretsian told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY that Chris has “one year to change his mind!”

Chris Rock has no interest in talking about his conflict with Will Smith and the controversial Oscars slap, unless he is offered a large amount of money.The comedian recently shared his thoughts about the whole situation during one of his comedy sets at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in California, revealing that he is “Okay” and that he has “a whole show,” so he is “not talking about that” until he gets paid, adding, “Life is good. I got my hearing back.”It was previously reported that Will and Chris were in speaking terms following the incident, however Chris’ brother Tony Rock revealed on social media that this was not the case.Many celebrities have shared their thoughts on the incident following the televised Oscars ceremony, including co-host Amy Schumer who confessed she was still triggered and traumatized by the slap, and actress Rachel Zegler, who avoided picking sides, saying, “I feel like it’s none of my business.”After the situation Chris declined to press charges and Will shared a public apology, “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris.

Offering his thoughts on the matter. After Will Smith made headlines for slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars, the comedian has found his own way to address the drama.

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s marriage has been at the recieving end of a lot of public scrutiny over the years, with longstanding rumors insisting the pair had an open marriage. While the couple has since denied those musings about their marriage, they did let fans in on a very intimate time in their union when the Girls Trip actress was in a relationship with someone else.The Academy bans Will Smith from the Oscars for the next 10 yearsWill Smith’s upcoming projects paused after Oscars incidentWill Smith resigns from the Academy after hitting Chris Rock, ‘I am heartbroken’In July 2020, Jada centered an episode of her series The Red Table Talk around herself to reveal that she had a relationship with R&B singer August Alsina while separated from her husband.

Chris Rock was seen in New York City on Monday going for a walk, days after Will Smith received a 10-year ban from the Academy Awards after slapping the comedian during the March 27 show.The 57-year-old comic donned a puffy navy blue coat with yellow interior over a black T-shirt with sage green cargo pants and white sneakers on the walk in the Big Apple.He rounded out his ensemble with a black beanie cap, sunglasses and headphones as he was seen on the daytime outing. The latest:Chris Rock, 57, was seen in New York City on Monday going for a walk, days after Will Smith received a 10-year ban from the Academy Awards after slapping the comedian during the March 27 showThe Andrews, South Carolina-born entertainer has stayed relatively mum about the incident involving Smith at the Oscars, briefly addressing it at a few comedy shows in the two weeks since the shocking occurrence.The Emmy-winning performer appeared Friday at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California, telling the audience, 'I'm okay.

Jada Pinkett Smith made her first red carpet appearance over the weekend following the much-talked-about Oscar altercation between Will Smith and Chris Rock.MORE: Jada Pinkett Smith showcases baby bump in gorgeous photoNow fully back on social media, the star has been sharing pictures from her weekend, including a proud moment involving her daughter Willow Smith.Taking to Instagram, the A Different World actress shared a picture of her daughter and Camila Cabello posing together backstage at Saturday Night Live.VIDEO: Will Smith punches Chris Rock at the OscarsIn the caption, Jada wrote: "Who got to see these two talented beauties @willowsmith @camila_cabello on SNL last night?"MORE: Jada Pinkett Smith makes red carpet return following Oscars nightMORE: Jada Pinkett Smith looks like a Bond girl at Critics' Choice AwardsThe Hollywood star added a series of emojis including a love heart and a flexing muscle alongside her message.Jada also shared pictures from her night out on Saturday too, where she stepped out in a dazzling gold gown to support her friend Debbie Allen for the opening of her Dance Academy. Jada Pinkett Smith paid tribute to her daughter Willow SmithAlongside photos of her walking the red carpet, Jada wrote: "@therealdebbieallen said wrap it all in gold and come let the kids fill your soul.

Kodak moment. As a tsunami wave of controversy continues to plague the “Girls Trip” star and husband Will Smith, 53, in the wake of the latter’s career-threatening Oscars 2022 slap, rapper Kodak Black, 24, is weighing in on their marital mayhem with a both a reprimand and a proposal for Pinkett Smith, 50. In doing so, the always controversial Kodak also managed to take a bombshell swipe at the street cred of late hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur, TMZ first reported.“Jada Pinkett, baby you is out of pocket,” Kodak chastised Saturday during a foul-mouthed Instagram Live, which is now going viral on Twitter.“Come f–k with Kodak. That’s what you need to do, because you’re on some bulls–t,” he added.

Jada Pinkett Smith recalled 'crying down the freaking aisle' at her 'horrible' shotgun wedding to Will Smith in a resurfaced clip from her show Red Table Talk.Will, 53, is awaiting a decision from the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Scientists about his potential penalty for slapping Chris Rock onstage at the Oscars over a joke he made about Jada.Now a 2018 episode of Red Table Talkhas begun circulating online where Will appeared as a guest and Jada insisted she 'never wanted to get married.' Throwback:Jada Pinkett Smith recalled 'crying down the freaking aisle' at her 'horrible' shotgun wedding to Will Smith in a resurfaced clip from her show Red Table Talk The big day:Will and Jada got married on New Year's Eve 1997 at the Gothic-style Cloisters Castle in a suburb of her hometown of BaltimoreWill has been a guest multiple times on the talk show, which Jada hosts with her mother Adrienne 'Gammy' Banfield-Norris and daughter Willow Smith.The series hit the headlines in 2020 when Jada brought Will on to discuss her extramarital 'entanglement' with the singer August Alsina. Since then Will has argued in GQthat 'marriage for us can’t be a prison' and revealed 'Jada never believed in conventional marriage.'Jada herself discussed her reservations about marriage in the resurfaced Red Table Talk episode from 2018, revealing that she decided to tie the knot with Will in order to placate her mother after getting pregnant.

Jada Pinkett Smith seems to be distancing herself from the infamous Oscars slap, and brand experts tell Fox News Digital it might be a wise move. Pinkett Smith and husband Will Smith made headlines after Will slapped Chris Rock in the face over a joke Rock told while presenting an award at the 94th annual Academy Awards.

Kodak Black didn't bother being romantic as he tried to woo Jada Pinkett Smith in a bizarre Instagram Live video from earlier this weekend.The 24-year-old rapper — who could barely be seen in the dark clip — said Jada, 50, was 'out of pocket' and urged her to 'come f*** with me' at the start of his video.He also seemed to criticize her for staying married to Will Smith, 53, while alluding to her admission about carrying on a relationship with another man while she was married to the Oscar winner. Presumptuous: Rapper Kodak Black, 24, said in an Instagram Live clip from this weekend that Jada Pinkett Smith, 50, should leave her husband Will Smith, 53, to be with him instead; seen in 2017'That s*** you doing ain't real, bro.

Billy Porter is weighing in on the headline-grabbing Oscars slap, and what he felt it represented about the societal perception of masculinity.ET's Kevin Frazier spoke with Porter at the grand opening of the Shonda Rhimes Performing Arts Center, home of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, in Los Angeles on Saturday, and he shared his take on the incident and its aftermath.Will Smith's actions at the 2022 Oscars have been at the forefront of public discourse since the moment he took the stage to hit Chris Rock during the live show. Now, less than two weeks later, Smith has been banned from attending the Oscars for 10 years, and Porter says it's tough to really address the altercation.«It's a really rough one for me, you know, because I don't know that I have the authority to speak on it.