‘Will Smith … deserves all the crap he’s gotten’: Chris Rock reportedly calls Will Smith ‘lame’ for ‘playing the victim’ after reenacting Oscars 2022 slap in ‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’

Will Smith is currently having his big moment of redemption after facing ridicule and public criticism since he slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars, after which he won an Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of Serena and Venus’ father in the film “King Richard.”

The comedian has apologized several times for the infamous slap he referenced in his latest film, “Bad Boys: Ride or Die.”

Towards the end of the film, Smith was slapped several times by his co-star Martin Lawrence. Making this film was “really personal,” says director Bilall Fallah, one half of the Belgian directing duo Adil & Bilall, in a Variety interview.

However, many had mixed feelings about reliving a humiliating moment for Rock and Smith that nearly destroyed the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s career.

“Man that damn Reggie!!!! Definitely my favorite part. Also love how they played along with that Oscar slap. Great movie #BadBoys @BadBoys,” one person wrote on X.

Another said: “It really annoys me that Bad Boys 4 is bringing the hate speech about Will’s Oscar loss back into the media.”

It seems that Rock also disagreed with the scene. A source recently told In Touch, “Chris thinks it’s a pretty cheap stunt and tells people how lame he thinks it is. It’s a classic case of Will making light of a terrible situation.”

They claimed that Smith was “playing the victim” in the face of what some are calling “the lowest point of his career.”

After months of silence, Rock addressed the slap in his live comedy special “Selective Outrage” on Netflix. He also stepped away from his role as host of the Globes last year and has tried to keep a “low profile” since then.

“It annoys him that people keep bringing it up. He suffered just as much as Will did and now Will has turned it into a funny scene in his movie. For Chris, it’s further proof that Will is a complete jerk who deserves all the crap he’s gotten. Chris isn’t going to let up,” the source continued. “If there’s an opportunity to get revenge on Will later, he’ll take it.”

Charlamagne says Will Smith hasn’t lost any credibility and no one ever cared that Will Smith slapped Chris Rock in response to the recent box office success of “Bad Boys: Ride or Die.”

(🎥 Brilliant Idiots/YouTube) pic.twitter.com/7PMEx1NJnS

— The Art of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) 21 June 2024

Rock joked that he had to be paid to talk about what happened, and his special aired a week before the 2023 Academy Awards. That same year, he performed on stage at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles with Dave Chappelle. At the time, Rock described the incident by saying he was “punched by the smoothest n—a that ever rapped.”

To defend his wife’s honor, Smith took the stage as Rock was presenting an award and slapped Rock for a joke about “GI Jane” and Jada Pinkett Smith’s bald head. That moment led to Smith’s 10-year ban from the Oscars and helped his wife tell the world about her battle with alopecia.

And still no apology from Rock to the “Matrix” star.