The Chris Rock and Will Smith slap at the Oscars saga still has a few more loose ends that need to be tied up, one of the biggest among them exactly why Smith did not face any sort of resistance in his attack on the well known comedian.
Smith released an apology after his attack on Rock, but many people are still not satisfied with his response.
Some are even calling for him to be banned from the Oscars in the coming years, a topic that the Board of Governors recently discussed.
Now, new information is surfacing about police involvement in the incident, and it explains more about the role played by Chris Rock’s response after the incident.
LAPD Planned to Arrest Will Smith Before Chris Rock Stepped In
According to producer of “World News Tonight” Will Packer, LAPD officers were on the scene during Sunday’s Oscars and told Rock that what happened was battery.
“This is battery,” they said to him according to ABC7 News in Los Angeles, giving him the option to press charges against Smith, whom they were prepared to arrest.
The comedian was “adamant” that he did not want to press charges, however.
“They said, we will go get him. We are prepared. We are prepared to get him right now. You can press charges. We can arrest him. They were laying out the options,” Packer told ABC.
“And as they were talking, Chris was…being very dismissive of those options. He was like, no, I’m fine. He was, like, no, no, no.”
Rock “Declined to File a Police Report” After Smith Incident
At his own sold-out show in Boston on Wednesday, Rock addressed the crowd, saying he was “still processing what happened” and that he would have more to say at a later date.
It was his first appearance since the Oscars, and ticket sales have continued to be strong for the former Saturday Night Live star.
Many have commented that Rock showed incredible poise and calmness during the Smith incident, which could explain why his shows appear to be in the process of selling out.
