Fans may ‘not be ready’ for return after Oscars – CNET – ApparelGeek

Acknowledging the hesitation. Before the release of Emancipation – his first film since he sadly slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars — Will Smith gets candid about the kind of reaction he anticipates from fans.

“I completely understand that if someone isn’t ready, I would absolutely respect that and give them their space to not be ready,” said the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alum, 53, shared on Have a nice day DC on Sunday, November 27, when asked how fans would react to the film. “My biggest concern is my team, you know? [Director] Anthony [Fuqua] did what I think is the greatest job of his entire career. … The members of this team have done some of the best work of their entire careers, and my deepest hope is that my actions do not penalize my team. At this point, that’s what I’m working for. That’s what I hope. »

The Pursuit of happiness star, who won Best Actor for King Richard the same evening he hit Rock, 57, on stage, adding: “I hope the material – the power of the film, the timeliness of the story – I hope the good that can be done, you know, minimally open people’s hearts to see, recognize and support the amazing artists in and around this film.

During the same interview, Fuqua, 56, weighed in on the controversy surrounding Smith, who portrays runaway slave “Whipped Peter” in the historical drama.

“The movie for me is bigger than this moment,” said the director Have a nice day DC. “Four hundred years of slavery is greater than a moment. I hope people see it that way and watch the movie and be blown away by Will’s great performance and all the hard work of the whole team.

The filmmaker previously claimed that the film’s brutality and intensity were part of what made Smith slap Rock at the Oscars.

“It’s really hard to unleash a character who’s been bullied and called the N-word every day — constantly, every day — and still be the nicest person in the world. That I know,” Fuqua said. vanity lounge earlier this month.

He continued: “So no apologies to anyone or anything, but I can say he’s a good man and I hope people can forgive him and we can move on. I hope Chris and Will find a way to sit down publicly, privately, whatever, and make amends. I think that would be an amazing statement.

The 7 pounds the actor sadly punched the comedian after he made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smiththe head shaved during the ceremony. (The Red table discussion host, 51, has been candid about his battle with alopecia, which causes hair loss.)

Smith – who later resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was banned from all Academy events for 10 years – has publicly apologized to Rock twice since the incident.

The Saturday Night Live alum, for his part, refused to file a police report at the time and addressed the moment in his stand-up routine on several occasions, frequently mocking the slap.

“I’m not a victim, mother,” Rock said during a comedy show at the PNC Bank Arts Center in New Jersey over the summer. “Yeah, that hurts, motherfucker. But I shook that shit off and went to work the next day…I don’t go to the hospital for a paper cut.

Emancipation will hit theaters and be available to stream on Apple TV+ on Friday, December 9.