While you may want the Oscar slap heard ’round the world to stop reverberating, its echo keeps gaining mileage. While Will Smith got ahead of the Academy and resigned last night before they could weigh in with any major punitive reprisals—a wise and canny move—the conversation continues.
READ MORE: Will Smith Resigns From The Academy: “My Actions Were Inexcusable”
Giving oxygen to the flames last night was Denzel Washington, who was asked his thoughts on the matter at a Leadership Summit with author and pastor T.D. Jakes in a discussion centered on Washington’s career and faith (via THR and Variety).
To be fair, Washington was one of the first people counseling Smith after the incident where he slapped comedian Chris Rock during the Oscar telecast for insulting his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith during a comedy bit. The conversation turned to the Oscar Slap during the summit, and Washington admitted that he “stepped in the middle of World War III.”
Addressing the incident, Washington seemed to lead with empathy and spirituality, which wasn’t a surprise given the event. “Well, there’s a saying, ‘When the devil ignores you, then you know you’re doing something wrong,’” he told the pastor. “The devil goes, ‘Oh no, leave him alone, he’s my favorite.’ Conversely, when the devil comes at you, maybe it’s because he’s trying to do something right. And for whatever reason, the devil got ahold of that circumstance that night.”
The comments echo what Smith said on stage that night when he won his Best Actor Oscar for “King Richard.” During his acceptance speech, Smith thanked Washington and shared with the audience what the veteran actor had told him during their off-screen huddle. “At your highest moment, be careful; that’s when the devil comes for you.”
“Fortunately, there were people there. Not just me, but others, Tyler Perry came immediately right over there with me,” Washington continued. “[Saying] some prayers. I don’t wanna say what we talked about, but there but for the grace of God go any of us. Who are we to condemn? I don’t know all the ins and outs of the situation, but I know the only solution was prayer, the way I see it.”
Asked about rising for Smith’s standing ovation after slapping Rock—which many Academy members have criticized, filmmaker Pedro Almodovar being one who admitted he could not celebrate the actor in that moment by standing up—Denzel said, “I couldn’t have sat in my seat. No way I could have sat in my seat. That’s just not who I am.”
Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences last night amidst the growing chorus of criticism against him and the many news reports suggesting drastic action would be taken by the AMPAS. “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,” he said in a statement.
Rock briefly side-stepped the controversy during a comedy set in Boston, telling fans he would eventually address it but already had a new set prepared and was “still processing.” At some point, Rock, Smith, and Pinkett-Smith will probably do an extensive sit-down interview about this unfortunate incident, so, sorry, the discourse around it is probably not going away any time soon.