Jada and Will Smith spotted in public together for first time since Oscars slap

The Academy banned Will Smith for 10 years after he slapped comedian Chris Rock during the awards ceremony in March.

Aug 15, 2022

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith were spotted together publicly for the first time since the 94th annual Academy Awards in March. At that ceremony, Will Smith infamously walked onto the stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock.

On Saturday, the Smiths were photographed in California at Nobu Malibu restaurant, according to People. Will, sporting a full beard, was wearing a blue polo shirt and a cap. Jada, following closely behind him, wore a black top and yellow-lens sunglasses, with a flannel shirt tied around her waist.

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Another photo showed him giving a peace sign. The sighting marked the first time the Smiths have been seen together in public since the Oscars confrontation in March. During the live broadcast, Will Smith walked onto the stage and slapped Rock in the face after he made a joke about Jada’s bald head.

Smith returned to his seat and commenced to curse at Rock to “Keep my wife’s name out your f–king mouth,” again during the live broadcast. Rock proceeded with the ceremony, presenting the award for best documentary feature, which was won by Questlove for “Summer of Soul.” Smith later won the Oscar for best actor for his role in “King Richard” and apologized to the crowd while alluding that he acted out of a need to protect his wife, whose hair loss was caused by alopecia.

Jada Pinkett Smith, holding hands with Will Smith at the Oscars ceremony in March, had a message on her “Red Table Talk” program stating that “the Smith family is focusing on deep healing” after her husband slapped comedian Chris Rock at the awards show. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

Since then, Will Smith has publicly apologized to Rock twice, once on his Instagram page the following day and in an apology video he posted last month. In the video, he stated that he had reached out to speak with Rock, but the comic is “not ready to talk, and when he is, he will reach out.”

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Will Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, but the Academy gave him a 10-year ban from attending the Oscars. He will, however, be eligible for nominations and awards during that time.

Jada Pinkett Smith addressed the slap in April on the season 5 premiere of her Facebook Watch talk show, “Red Table Talk.” A statement appeared at the beginning of the episode, saying, “the Smith family is focusing on deep healing. Some of the discoveries around the healing will be shared at the table when the time calls.”

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