Surely, the world has seen memes of Will Smith slapping someone onstage. The man is Chris Rock, a well-known comedian in Hollywood. This was about a joke made by Chris, “Jada, I love you! G.I. Jane 2, can’t wait to see it!”. The hall was filled with laughter while Jada Pinkett Smith was caught on video rolling her eyes, while her husband Will was seen laughing before he walked onstage to slap Chris on the face.
Apparently, the joke hit a nerve as it was known to many people that Jada shared about her struggle with an autoimmune disease called Alopecia that has caused her hair loss. Although still beautiful in bald hair, this was no laughing matter to her husband Will Smith, and to people who have been struggling with the same condition.
Celebrity Reactions
Snoop Dogg was asked in an interview on NBC if he thought the slapping was staged. “Sorta kinda, but I never know, still don’t know.” Well, it’s the entertainment industry. Miss Universe 2015, had been most talked about when Steve Harvey announced the wrong winner. Some people in the comments sections of articles even commented that they wouldn’t have known the Oscars happened if the slapping did not happen.
Nicki Minaj tweeted, “I love Chris Rock. I don’t think he would’ve made that joke had he known what Jada recently shared- but between him & the whole team @ the #Oscars you mean to tell me not ONE of y’all heard this woman just share this heartbreaking story? #ComeOnSon …”
And continued to another tweet. “The husband gets a front-row seat to his wife’s pain… he’s the 1 consoling her… drying her tears behind closed doors when those cameras go off. Social media has made ppl feel that these “husbands” won’t ever run into them in real life.”
This tweet by Minajesty shows a deeper understanding of what drove Will to act as he did, and the emphasis on celebrities being people with emotions that can conquer them at times.
Tatyana Ali tweeted “I love #WillSmith very much. @chrisrock didn’t deserve to be hit. Period. My heart aches for what has happened. I don’t know what caused that chaos & confusion, but I do know that Will has a big heart. I’ve seen him many times try his best to do what is right. I believe in him.”
Veteran comedian-actor, Jim Carey said, “I was sickened by the standing ovation. I felt like Hollywood was just spineless en masse. It really felt like this was a clear indication that we’re not the cool club anymore.” Ahuh, well the man still has a point. Why hasn’t anyone intervened when there were still rules regarding violent acts which was clearly violated?
Now let’s talk about the Psychology of it all.
“The” Oscars
It seemed that the Oscars were also caught off guard in terms of rule implementation. In a way, it was strategic, and calculated—it was backed by how Chris Rock professionally continued with the show as the presenter, instead of fighting back and screaming back at Will. People must give credit to the comedian for keeping the show going. He clearly understood how big a role he played that night.
The hall was full of people who know how to play it cool to keep the show going. They knew in advance that Will Smith was about to receive an award. The police intervening will cause more stir than keeping the show going.
The nature of comedy
Comedy is not for all seasons; people surely know that by now. Unless one is in a comedy bar waiting to be roasted, it’s best to calculate the words one has to say, especially at the Oscars where people have competed to watch a few people go onstage. It so happened that the G.I. Jane joke wasn’t for a person, let alone a woman who had no choice but to keep her hair bald. This might redefine comedy by making comedians more aware of the crowd, and who they choose to roast or make puns at.
The sides of the coin.
Will Smith is a husband who sees everything besides his beautiful wife slaying the bald head and wearing designer clothes under the limelight, only he and his family know what Jada truly feels every now and then about how she battles with the disease. At first, he was laughing with everyone, perhaps, seeing his wife’s reaction dawned on him that the joke was an insult on Jada’s part.
One could rehearse a lot of could-haves and would-have-been. A lot of people are saying that they do not condone violence of any kind.
People sympathize with Chris Rock for being professional and for keeping the show going despite having been slapped and sworn at in front of hundreds of well-known people. It became clear that he didn’t know about Jada’s condition, and Will Smith did not know that Chris didn’t know—and perhaps so clouded by emotions that he did not reconsider the thought.
It’s also unfortunate for Will Smith who had to somehow lose his shine by having to apologize instead of being solely happy winning an award for best actor.
Chivalry versus Toxic Masculinity: Will Smith had to “man up”.
This explains how what happened cannot only fall on Will’s demise. In a hall filled with important people where one’s wife is being taunted because of her appearance is a perfect recipe to prompt a man to stand up, only, in this case, physical violence should have could have been avoided.
There are masculine traits that have been accepted by modern society and labeled as the definition of manliness—which can be dangerous. One evidence is Russia showing strength, and Ukraine, not backing down, although that’s an entirely different story.
Among these “Manly” traits are men’s physical strength, sexual virility, dominance, lack of emotion, and self-sufficiency. Take a moment to let these words sink in. When exaggerated, a man, trying to live up to expectations would resort to aggression, sexual aggression and control, a tendency to glorify violence low empathy, and suppressing emotions to chauvinism and sexism.
See, men get confused about their duties too. A perfect example is when people are advocating feminism and yet expect chivalry. Let alone someone who has inspired millions of people to make tremendous actions in pursuit of success in life.
If you want to hear more interesting stories about entertainment or condo living check out our blogs here. If you are looking for a new condominium, check out Vista Residences!
Vista Residences is the condominium arm of the country’s largest homebuilder, Vista Land & Lifescapes, Inc. that offers ready for occupancy and pre-selling condominium projects in Manila, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Ortigas, Baguio, Cebu, and CDO that are strategically located within major cities, in close proximity to premium universities, transit-oriented locations, and developed business districts.
For more information on Vista Residences, email [email protected], follow @VistaResidencesOfficial on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, or call the Marketing Office at 0999 886 4262 / 0917 582 5167.
