About ten seconds after Chris joked that Pinkett Smith was going to be in GI Jane 2 at the 2022 Oscars, the energy of the ceremony shifted. Will ascended to the stage and delivered Rock a swift slap across the face, sending a shockwave of silence across the room, and social media fed into a frenzy. Smith later won the Best Actor trophy for his work in King Richard, but by the time that happened? Most people were in a daze. What. Just. Happened?
By the following day, it was apparent that the repercussions of that slap would be coursing through Hollywood for some time to come. Last Friday, not just in the form of statements and essays, Will Smith announced that he was resigning from the Academy, adding,
“My actions at the 94th Academy Awards presentation were shocking, painful, and inexcusable. The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and global audiences at home.”
And now, as the incident is officially one week in the rearview, Will Smith is starting to see tangible repercussions following his actions at the Academy Awards—as in, ones that will hurt his bottom line. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Will Smith’s upcoming Netflix film Fast and Loose has reportedly slowed production. The film, which had already lost its director before Smith’s altercation, was supposedly reprioritized following the Oscars. Will Smith was set to star in the movie, telling “the story of a crime boss who loses his memory after an attack.”
