A new report reveals that the 'King Richard' actor's family members are 'proud' of him after he publicly apologized to the comedian, whom he smacked right in the face while onstage at the annual ceremony back in March.
- Aug 3, 2022
AceShowbiz - Will Smith's family remains supportive of the "King Richard" actor amid the Oscars slap drama with Chris Rock. A new report revealed that they're "proud" of him after he publicly apologized to the comedian, whom he smacked right in the face while onstage at the annual ceremony back in March.
A source spilled to HollywoodLife.com that Will's wife Jada Pinkett Smith "is proud that Will finally made the decision to apologize publicly" in an Instagram video that Will shared earlier this week. "She feels that in addition to the written apology, him opening up about it by talking was a better way to convey the truth in his heart. Will wishes he could take it all back, but he can't and all he can do is try to heal the wounds from here," said the source.
The insider added that the Oscar-winning actor is fully aware of the impact of the shocking moment. "He knows there are consequences for his actions, and it's something he and Jada have discussed in great lengths," the source shared. "It's not the example he wants to set for his kids, and she knows he can do better than that. Will explained why he decided to wait, and it wasn't a decision he took lightly."
The informant also revealed why Will waited before issuing the apology to Chris. The source explained, "It's something he's struggled with because he didn't want an apology to come off as inauthentic or disingenuous." The source also noted that "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" alum "needed some time to do some soul searching and wanted to respond accordingly."
Additionally, Will allegedly could understand if Chris isn't ready to accept his apology just yet. Of the "Saturday Night Live" alum, the source added, "Despite Will's apology, he understands if Chris isn't ready to accept it at this point. He gets that the slap didn't only affect Chris, but it affected his career, his family and friends, it affected every aspect of his life. Will knows he can't control that; all he can do is try to show how much he's sorry and move forward."
It was also said that Will's carefully thought-out apology meant a lot for Will's daughter Willow Smith. "Willow and her brother Jaden were not in any way involved in what happened, but they did get a lot of heat for supporting their father following the incident and because of this they have both experienced a lot of backlash - in their career and with their friends," another source added. "They are both really proud of their father and really hope this can start the healing so that everyone can move on from this and come to a place of love."
In his apology video posted Friday, July 29, Will said that he was "fogged out" and "fuzzy" at the time of the slap, which was why he didn't say sorry to Chris at the time. He added, "I've reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that he's not ready to talk when he is, he will reach out. So I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you. My behavior was unacceptable and I'm here whenever you're ready to talk."
