Will Smith resigns from the Academy after slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars as he calls his actions 'inexcusable'

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Will Smith has now resigned from the Academy following the viral incident he was involved in at the Oscars. The acclaimed actor slapped comedian Chris Rock in the face during the ceremony held on Sunday, March 27, in response to a joke made about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith.

The 94th annual film awards show was thrown into chaos when Will Smith took offence to a comment host Chris Rock made about Jada's short haircut, as he referred to looking forward to seeing her star in the next GI Jane film.

But the joke was not taken lightly by Will, 53, whose wife suffers with alopecia which is what prompted her to shave her head, as he reacted by walking on stage and slapping Chris in front of a live audience - and millions of viewers across the world. READ MORE: The Wanted's Tom Parker too weak to sing in heartbreaking footage of final performance two weeks ago In response to the attack the Men in Black actor, who went on to win his first Academy Award for best actor in King Richard just moments later, has now resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In a statement released by The Hollywood Reporter, Smith called his actions "inexcusable" and said that he would "accept any further consequences".