From 'he deserved it' to 'unforgivable': What you said about Will Smith's Oscars slap
Scandal
Scandal

From 'he deserved it' to 'unforgivable': What you said about Will Smith's Oscars slap

"This nonsense wouldn't fly in kindergarten."

There's only one Oscars moment everyone is talking about, and that's Will Smith absolutely losing his mind at Chris Rock, mid-ceremony. 

The King Richard star stormed the stage, smacked in the comedian in the face and later yelled "keep my wife's name out your f**king mouth" - but you already knew that, didn't you?

Just for that extra bit of context, Chris made a joke about Will's wife Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head, which she wears due to alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss. 

Since those absolutely wild scenes unfolded, debates have been raging online about who was right, who was wrong and who's got the best 'Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' gag. 

ICYMI, Will Smith broke his silence on the whole ordeal in an Instagram post saying he was "embarrassed" about his "unacceptable" behaviour. 

But while we were all waiting for that, you guys were sounding off in the Facebook comments, and it turns out the opinions are split into some pretty distinctive groups: 

The 'Everybody Hates Chris' Gang 
"He literally made an offensive comment about a lady who's dealing with a health issue. On TV! Which thousands of people with the same condition are dealing with. Jada should have slapped him herself." 

"Alopecia is a disease that's hard enough to deal with, without some random making fun of her. He deserved it. There are so many other jokes he could make - disabilities or diseases aren't funny." 

"Bloody good on Will, Chris Rock made a below the belt hit and peace of shit crossed the line pulling the trigger! And had the humiliation returned with interest."

The 'Sit the F**k Down, Will' Squad 
"Disgraceful behaviour. Such a sense of entitlement to believe that what he did was okay. He was laughing until he realized Jada wasn't. Not cool at all." 

"Punch someone, scream and yell at them at a gathering and then get given an award. This nonsense wouldn't fly in kindergarten." 

"You need a much thicker skin if it going to be in the public eye, sure the joke missed the mark, but humour is subjective. There are worse things in life than losing your hair. There are far better ways to deal with what went down."

"These 'celebrities' are just overgrown children - it is time to ignore all their entitled speeches and dismiss their life events as not relevant!" 

"Not a good sign Will, your inner Kanye is showing signs of career-ending-itis." 

"Unforgivable. Chris is a comedian. Yes, Will's wife suffers from alopecia - let’s hope Chris did not know this - you still don’t go around hitting people. Think of all the people that look up to Will. Rather appalling." 

Team 'That Was Totally Staged' 
"If that's real, Chris Rock must be a tough man, 'cos he carried on straight away. No mark on his face. Surely a slap that big would have a different reaction." 

"I think it was a prank to improve ratings." 

"That is so fake it makes 'Terminator' look real ." 

"Fake, definitely promoting Chris Rock's 'Ego Death' tour this year."

"It's fake IMO, Will was laughing at the joke and smirks when he turns to leave. " 

The 'Nah, That Was Legit' League 
"Has to be real, no way he would be yelling and swearing on live TV during the Oscars especially when up for the award. He was hurt and so was Jada." 

"He was literally swearing at the man during the Oscars, then crying in his acceptance speech. If this shit is fake, they need to hold another Oscars ceremony and give both of these dudes an award lol." 

"I am 'Team Real' now because there's no way Will would have agreed to overshadow his own Oscar win." 

"Why would the organiser want violence and swearing on their broadcast? Serves no purpose and will probably end in a fine. There is no benefit to either person except extreme awkwardness and embarrassment. Yeah, some things get staged, but this would serve no purpose to anyone. Looked very real." 

"Real. Definitely real. The anger in Will is raw." 

The 'Jada Can Look After Herself' Club 
"I would be absolutely mortified if my husband did this for me. Violence is not the answer. Will should have picked up his wife's hand and walked out with her. Would have spoken volumes. Chris would have totally understood then. Chris may not have known she had alopecia." 

"Jada should have done the slapping if she was so offended. Now THAT would have made great TV!" 

"Women don’t need the likes of Will Smith to defend them. Jada's response was the right one - she just rolled her eyes and did not laugh." 

The 'Stay Out of This, Denzel' Association 
"Equally disappointing was Denzel Washington's rationale with 'the devil made you do it' korero! Anyone who acts out in violence regardless of provocation needs to take 100% responsibility not get into a defensive justifying speech seeded with 'please let me back next awards!'" 

The 'Never Miss a Fresh Prince Gag' Society
"He got in one little fight and his mum got scared!" 

"Well, looks like he’s moving with his aunt and uncle to Bel Air - the naughty boy. All staged, 'and the best actor goes to…'"

"He was just a guy that was up to no good."