Richard Williams Speaks Out After Will Smith’s Chris Rock Slap

etcanada.com:

Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena Williams and the strong-willed tennis coach Will Smith portrayed in his Oscar-winning performance of “King Richard”, is speaking out following Smith’s altercation with Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars.

Williams provided a statement to ET Monday, after Smith slapped Rock during Sunday night’s broadcast when the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. “We don’t know all the details of what happened, but we don’t condone anyone hitting anyone else unless it’s in self-defense,” Williams said via his son, Chavoita LeSane. “My father was as surprised as anyone when Will Smith suddenly retaliated against Chris Rock for making a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith on Sunday,” LeSane went on to share. “I want to congratulate Will on the Oscar.

It was an honor to see him win Best Actor.” Williams’ statement came after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced it had launched a formal review into the onstage incident, after condemning the violence that took place Sunday. “The Academy condemns the actions of Mr.

Smith at last night’s show,” the statement released on Monday reads. “We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law.” It all went down when Rock took the stage to present at the 94th annual Academy Awards.