Chris Rock's Brother Tony Says 'There Was a Genuine Friendship' with Will Smith Before Oscar Slap

Mar. 15, 2025

In a video posted to his social media accounts July 29, Will, 53,apologized to Chris, 57, four months afterhitting him onstage atthe Oscars. Will had previously apologized in a statement shared after the incident, saying he “reacted emotionally” after Chris' joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head (she lives with alopecia).

Will also apologized to Chris' mother in the video,referring to an interview she didwhere she said, “When [Will] slapped Chris, he slapped all of us. He really slapped me, because when you hurt my child, you hurt me.”

Said Will, “That was one of those things about that moment, I just didn’t realize— I wasn’t thinking about how many people got hurt in that moment. So I want to apologize to Chris' mother, I want to apologize to Chris' family, specifically Tony Rock. We had a great relationship, you know? Tony Rock was my man. And this is probably irreparable.”

Chris' younger brother, who hasspoken out about the slap before, reacted to the video on Twitter Aug. 2 when a fan asked his thoughts.

“All the crumbs and losers on social media repeatedly said it had nothing to do with me and I should be quiet or stay out of it. Others said I (who’s been making lots of money since 1999) was commenting in an attempt to gain notoriety,“wroteTony, 48.

Frederick M. Brown/Getty

Days afterthe Oscarsincident, Tony expressed on Twitter that he did not approve of Will’s written apology at the time. Will, who won Best Actor that night, has since resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was banned from attending Academy events for 10 years.

A source told PEOPLE earlier this month thatChris had “moved on” from the incidentprior to Will’s apology video. “Chris doesn’t need to talk. This is clearly something that bothers Will more than Chris,” the source said. “Will needs to deal with his issues. Chris is fine.”

In his video, Will revealed that he had reached out to Chris privately, claiming he received a message back that Chris was “not ready to talk” and would “reach out” when he was.

Jada, 50,addressed the incident on an episodeof herRed Table Talkshow, saying, “About Oscar night: My deepest hope is that these two intelligent, capable men have an opportunity to heal, talk this out and reconcile. With the state of the world today, we need ‘em both, and we all actually need one another more than ever. Until then, Will and I are continuing to do what we have done for the last 28 years — and that’s [to] keep figuring out this thing called life together.”

source: people.com