Despite actor Will Smith’s Instagram apology to Chris Rock for hitting him on live television during the Academy Awards, the comedian’s brother says it’s not enough.
Chris Rock had cracked a joke about the hair of Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith — “Jada, love you, ‘G.I. Jane 2,’ can’t wait to see it” — before Smith himself stormed onstage and slapped Rock. Pinkett Smith has alopecia, an autoimmune condition that causes hair loss.
He returned to his seat and shouted profanities at the comedian before going on to win the Oscar for best actor for his role as Richard Williams in “King Richard.”
On Tuesday night, Chris Rock’s brother Tony, who is also a comedian, responded on Twitter to several questions about the incident.
“Do you approve of the apology?” one person asked Tony Rock.
“No,” he replied.
Tony Rock also said that the two stars have not made up, despite reports to the contrary, and retweeted another comment praising his big brother.
“@TONYROCK Let Bro know he’s a better man than people give him credit for. As bad as the situation was, it could have gone completely sideways if he hadn’t been the adult in the room,” @RealBigSol posted and Tony Rock retweeted with a peace sign emoji.
Tony Rock ended his Twitter session by encouraging his followers to watch Chris Rock’s 2009 documentary “Good Hair,” which explores the importance of hair in Black culture.
“Be sure to watch ‘Good Hair’ since the narrative is now changed to all my bro does is disrespect women of color,” Tony Rock wrote.
Will Smith’s mother, Carolyn, 85, had also weighed in on the incident, saying Tuesday she had been watching the ceremony at home with family and was shocked to see her son “go off” on national television.
“He is a very even, people person,” she told ABC affiliate WPVI of Philadelphia. “That’s the first time I’ve ever seen him go off. First time in his lifetime... I’ve never seen him do that.”
She added that despite the incident, she was still “proud of him being him” and winning best actor for his leading role in “King Richard.”
“I know how he works, how hard he works...I’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting,” Carolyn Smith told WPVI. “When I heard the name, I was just, ‘Yes!’”
Richard Williams, Venus and Serena Williams’ father and the man Will Smith portrays in “King Richard,” also spoke out on the incident on Monday night.
“We don’t know all the details of what happened,” Richard Williams, via his son Chavoita LeSane, told NBC News. “But we don’t condone anyone hitting anyone else unless it’s in self-defense.”
