Is Chris Rock pressing charges against Will Smith? LAPD issues statement over Oscars 2022 punching incident

The 94th Academy Awards ended up being one of the most interesting Oscars events in decades, owing to an altercation between presenter Chris Rock and ‘Best Male Actor’ winner Will Smith. While Rock was on-stage presenting the Oscars for the Best Documentary, he made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

Referring to Pinkett Smith’s shaved head look, the Grammy-winning comedian joked about the actress being cast in GI Jane 2, the hypothetical sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1997 film. In the movie, lead actress Demi Moore played the character of Jordan O’Neill, who shaved her head to join the Navy SEALs.

Following Rock’s joke, Smith walked up to the stage and smacked the comedian around his chin. Upon returning to his seat, the King Richard star expressed himself verbally and threatened Rock not to speak about Jada Pinkett Smith.

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LAPD’s statement reveals whether Chris Rock is pressing charges against Oscar-winning actor Will Smith

Within a few hours after the incident, the Los Angeles Police Department issued a statement revealing that Rock (57) had not showcased any intention of pressing charges against the 53-year-old actor.

While the statement did not mention either of the stars by their name, it referred to the incident clearly and acknowledged the altercation at the Oscars 2022. The official statement mentioned:

“The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report…”

This insinuates that Rock has decided not to pursue the confrontation between him and Will Smith legally. However, the LAPD also added that an investigation would be opened if “the other party,” i.e., Chris Rock, decides to press charges in the future.

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Possible reasons for Will Smith snapping at Chris Rock

Following Rock’s “GI Jane 2” joke about Jada Pinkett Smith, the King Richard star slapped Rock. After returning to his seat in the front row, Smith said:

“Keep my wife’s name out of your f**king mouth.”

He reportedly reiterated a similar statement as the camera panned towards Chris Rock. The comedian tried to maintain his composure. While the US broadcast muted the comedian’s response, a viral recording of the live telecast in Australia made it online with the audio intact. Following the altercation, Rock said:

“Will Smith just smacked the sh*t out of me. Wow, dude. It was a G.I. Jane joke.”

Initially, when Chris Rock made the joke, Smith appeared to take it lightly and laughed. However, Jada Pinkett Smith did not appear to like the joke. Will Smith’s aggressive reaction to the joke was reportedly after seeing his wife’s reaction.

Jada Pinkett Smith suffers from alopecia which causes severe hair loss, owing to which the actress has shaved her hair. This might have been a sensitive topic that caused Will Smith’s impulsive and violent reaction.