Addressing the infamous incident during his sold-out show in Baltimore, the 'Grown Ups' star also criticizes the notion that 'words hurt,' suggesting those saying it 'have never been punched in the face.'
- Apr 25, 2022
AceShowbiz - Chris Rock has once again addressed the Oscars slap at his stand-up show. Taking the center stage at the Lyric Performing Arts Center in Baltimore on Friday night, April 22, the comedian shared an update on his mental and physical state after he was slapped by Will Smith at the March 27 ceremony.
"I'm alright. I'm alright," Chris, dressed in all white, said to the crowd. "Healed from the nicks and bruises...for the most part," he added, which was reportedly met with shouts and applause.
At another point during the sold-out show, he told the audience that "America is in trouble" because "everybody's scared they're going to offend someone." He also criticized the notion that "words hurt," stating "words only hurt if you've never been punched in the face."
Chris later attempted to involve the audience member in a joke but they brought up Jada Pinkett Smith. One attendee recounted, "I went to see Chris Rock last night and he was doing a joke and asked a lady in the front row to help out. He asked her, 'What's your name?' She said, 'Jada'….he said, 'sit yo a** down.' The place erupted."
Over the weekend, Chris' mom also broke her silence on the slap. "When Will slapped Chris, he slapped all of us, but he really slapped me," Rose Rock said in an interview with South Carolina's WISTV. "When you hurt my child, you hurt me."
The mother went on fuming, "You didn't think. You reacted to your wife giving you the side-eye and you went up and made her day because she was mulled over laughing when it happened." She also lamented Chris' presenting gig being taken away due to the incident, "No one even heard his speech. No one was able to just be in the moment because everyone was sitting there like, 'what just happened?' "
As for Chris, he previously said that he would only formally talk about the incident if he gets paid. "I'm OK, I have a whole show, and I'm not talking about that until I get paid," the 57-year-old said during his comedy show at Fantasy Springs in Indio, California on April 8.
