Chris Rock criticizes Will Smith’s slap in “Bad Boys 4” as a “cheap trick”

Will Smith says he has changed after the infamous “slap in the face” at the 2022 Oscars. But his latest film, “Bad Boys 4: Ride or Die,” which is a box office hit, reignited tensions with Chris Rock, who suffered the “slap in the face.”

SPOILER ALERT:

The film makes not-so-subtle references to the slap, which Chris doesn’t take well, and rightly so, depending on how you interpret the on-screen depiction.

“Chris thinks it’s a pretty cheap trick and tells people how lame he thinks it is,” a source told In Touch.

“This is a classic case of Will making light of a terrible situation. Will is playing the victim. It was the lowest point of his career, but that’s no excuse.”

So it’s fair to say that Chris has “kept a low profile” since the incident, but finds Will’s “attention-seeking” behavior disgusting, the source said. “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, this is further proof that Will is a complete jerk who deserves all the crap he’s gotten. Chris isn’t going to let up. If there’s an opportunity to get revenge on Will later, he’ll take it.”

In case you missed it, the slap happened as Chris, 59, was presenting the award for Best Documentary Feature at the 2022 Oscars. Will, 55, reacted violently to a joke Chris made about Jada Pinkett-Smith’s shaved head, a result of her alopecia. After Chris said, “Jada, I love you. GI Jane 2, I can’t wait to see it,” Will walked onstage, slapped Chris and yelled, “Take my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth.” Yes, that happened. Most people are over it and moved on, but the Will-Smith movie only added more fuel to the controversy.

As mentioned, there’s a scene in Bad Boys: Ride or Die, which hits theaters June 7, where Will’s character has a panic attack. Then Martin Lawrence’s character repeatedly punches him in the face. Point blank, right in the face. Giggles, please. Listen, that was a funny moment on screen. Not the panic attack, but the slap parade! The film’s directors acknowledged the parallels, explaining, “When you watch the film, you see there are some parallels between what happens in the film and real life. It’s almost like a meta-experience that Will goes through in the character of Mike Lowrey with some issues.”

I still giggle. Sorry, but it’s just funny. The whole art imitating life thing.