Willow Smith Says Oscar Slap Shook ‘Internal Demons’
Willow Smith has finally spoken out about her father, Will Smith’s notorious 94th annual Academy Awards slap.
During a recent interview with Billboard, the 21-year-old Emmy nominee said her father’s onstage slap of comedian Chris Rock didn't rock her world as much as if forced her to wrestle with her own internal demons.
"I see my whole family as being human and I love and accept them for all their humanness," she added. "Because of the position that we're in, our humanness sometimes isn't accepted, and we're expected to act in a way that isn't conducive to a healthy human life and isn't conducive to being honest."
Following Will Smith’s resignation from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Willow shared a cryptic message on Twitter, saying, “The meaning of life is found in challenge” and in another tweet, “Life is a series of reactions.”
On March 27, Smith, 53, walked on stage after Oscars host Chris Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s hair loss – due to alopecia. “Jada, I love ya. G.I. Jane 2, can’t wait to see ya,” Rock said. Smith then smacked Rock across the face, shocking viewers across the globe.
Rock, 57, reportedly has “moved on” from the incident. Despite the reports, it appears that Smith is still grappling with how to move forward.
“I spent the last three months replaying an understanding the nuance and complexity of what happened in that moment,” he shared in a post. Smith said he attempted to reach out to Rock but word came back to him that Rock is not ready to talk at this moment, but Smith said, “I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk.”
