Jada Pinkett Smith addresses Will Smith’s Chris Rock Oscars slap, reveals lessons learned one year on from scandal

Jada Pinkett Smith has addressed the issue at the root of the infamous 2022 Oscar’s slap between her husband Will Smith and comedian Chris Rock.

In an interview with The Guardian, Pinkett Smith referenced the slap publicly for the first time, sharing her feelings about her auto-immune disorder being discussed on a global scale.

“I learned a lot about detachment. And I learned a deeper beauty within myself, being able to let my hair go,” the 51-year-old actress shared.

“It’s been a hard one, a scary one – because specifically as Black women, we identify so much of ourselves with our hair. And it was scary. I had to really dig deep and see the beauty of myself beyond my aesthetics.

“When you think about how people get a little older, and say what they need to say without a filter – they’ve earned that. When you get to my age, you get so settled in your skin, so comfortable in the knowingness of you, that you don’t get concerned about what other people have to say.”

Though Pinkett Smith had previously discussed her alopecia on her Facebook Watch series Red Table Talk, the Oscars slap scandal promoted it to water-cooler talk.

In the infamous scandal, comedian and host Chris Rock was ribbing with the audience of celebrities, with Pinkett Smith falling prey to a joke about GI Jane, likening her bald hairstyle to the character’s.

Though it seemed like a harmless joke, it enraged Pinkett Smith’s husband Will Smith, who in the blink of an eye rose from his seat and stalked over to Rock, slapping him on the world stage.

“Keep my wife’s name out of your f–king mouth,” he shouted as he took a seat.

Soon after he was awarded Best Actor for his role in King Richard, which he did not have to give back later, even though he was promptly banned from the awards show for 10 years for his behaviour.

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