Oscars Slap Fight Aftermath – Geeks + Gamers

The battle of the night was between host Jimmy Kimmel and “Game Of Thrones” star Peter Dinklage. The two clashed in a fight over who gets to be crowned King Game Of Thrones, but they were both so into their own arguments that it ended up being more like a joke-off than anything else.

Aftermath of the Oscars Slap Fight

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More developments in the Oscar slap fight disaster are shaking out now that Hollywood is getting the notion that the general public isn’t on board with slapping people over jokes. First, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences responded to Will Smith’s conduct on Oscar night with a lukewarm, at best, statement:

Violence in any form is not tolerated by the Academy.

Tonight, we are thrilled to honor the 94th Academy Award recipients, who have earned this honor from their colleagues and moviegoers all across the globe.

— March 28, 2022, The Academy (@TheAcademy)

They had tougher words the following day and vowed action in a fresh statement:

“The Academy strongly condemns Mr. Smith’s behavior on last night’s program. We have begun a thorough investigation into the event and will consider further action and repercussions in line with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct, and California law.”

According to a US Weekly source, the delay was due to them wanting to confirm the slap was real and then being too preoccupied with making sure Chris Rock was okay, but I believe it was more likely that they wanted to see which way the wind was blowing before taking action against one of the last remaining movie stars, fading as he may be. The Academy’s Board of Governors will meet tomorrow night, Wednesday, according to The Hollywood Reporter, to deliberate potential disciplinary action. According to THR, Smith may be temporarily suspended from the Academy, but based on precedent (is anybody surprised these guys are fine with Roman Polanski?) and a response from board member Whoopi Goldberg, he is unlikely to have his Oscar award reversed.

The Screen Actors Guild (now the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) posted a statement on the SAG-AFTRA website shortly after the Academy did:

They haven’t said anything particular, but they have promised to take action against Will Smith. I’m not sure what that would mean; I doubt they’d toss him out of SAG-AFTRA and force him to forego all of his megastar union dues. And, although I appreciate the need to coordinate with the Academy, what will ABC do if Men in Black is not shown during the Sunday Night Movie slot? Whatever the situation may be, SAG-AFTRA is now talking a nice game.

Will Smith apologized to slapee Chris Rock on Instagram after the two groups made it obvious they weren’t backing him:

Following his acceptance speech and his post-ceremony party-hearty-Marty manner, it’s fair to say the Fresh Prince is in ass-covering mode, attempting to minimize any potential harm to his career and image. However, Jada Pinkett Smith responded to the incident on Instagram this morning:

That has about as much meaning as saying nothing at all, but it sounds like something a shallow Hollywood diva in need of attention might concoct for a few social media likes.

Chris Rock, on the other hand, has been silent thus far, and I don’t blame him. He’s come out of this looking better than everyone else, so he should simply sit back and watch and laugh. But I wouldn’t be shocked if he wrote a new stand-up routine over it. And he’ll need some material, since the greatest news to come out of this saga is that Rock’s future gigs have seen their ticket prices jump. Good for him; he did a fantastic job, and he deserves some kind of reward.

Check out Ryan’s article on the poor ratings for Sunday’s Academy Awards on RK Outpost for a hilarious postscript to the Will Smith slap story:

Are you enjoying the slapfight’s aftermath? What do you believe Will Smith’s consequences should be? Will a night’s stay at that Star Wars hotel someday match Chris Rock tickets? Leave your thoughts in the comments, and stay tuned to Geeks + Gamers for more Hollywood news!