Will Smith is expected to soon learn whether he can keep his Oscar for best actor after he slapped Chris Rock.
According to The Sun, the 54 member board of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is “almost entirely split” over whether or not to strip the actor of his award.
One source told the outlet, “There have been at least two different Zoom and conference calls with various members, and specific governors over the past ten days.”
“The decision was made earlier this week to expedite the hearing in the wake of Will’s resignation, and during that call it was clear that the decision would go to the wire,” the source added.
Additionally, members of the Academy, over 9,000, are also reportedly split over whether or not Smith should be stripped of his award.
“The governors themselves are also said to be in disagreement,” the source continued. “Given, though, that convicted sexual predator Harvey Weinstein and fugitive child rapist Roman Polanski haven’t been stripped of their gongs, the general consensus is that it would be madness and rank hypocrisy to take such a stand now.”
During the Oscars on Sunday night, comedian Rock made a joke about Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, because of her hair.
“Jada, I love you. ‘G.I. Jane 2,’ can’t wait to see it,” Rock said.
As The New York Times notes, Pinkett Smith has alopecia which is a condition that leads to hair loss.
After the joke, Will Smith walked up on stage and slapped Rock.
Chris Rock made fun of Jada and Will Smith got on stage to slap him and cursed him from his seat after. Live feed stopped on Astro because. Not scripted. Audience stunned. #Oscars pic.twitter.com/F5dN4prPfY
— Aysha Ridzuan (@ayshardzn) March 28, 2022
Will Smith won the award for best actor for his role in “King Richard.”
He later apologized to Rock in a post on Instagram. He wrote, “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”
The Academy previously said it was launching disciplinary hearings into the incident.
On April 1, Will Smith resigned from the Academy, saying he had “betrayed the trust of the” organization.
After the actor’s resignation, Academy president David Rubin moved up the board meeting to address Smith’s actions to April 8.
“I am calling a board meeting for this Friday morning, April 8, at 9:00 a.m. PT, rather than the previously scheduled April 18 meeting, to address possible sanctions for Will Smith in response to his actions during the Oscars broadcast on March 27,” he said in a letter.
Rubin added, “Following Mr. Smith’s resignation of his Academy membership on Friday, April 1, suspension or expulsion are no longer a possibility, and the legally prescribed timetable no longer applies. It is in the best interest of all involved for this to be handled in a timely fashion.”
