The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has banned Will Smith from all academy events for 10 years because he slapped Chris Rock on this year's show.
"The Board of Trustees has decided that, beginning April 8, 2022, for a period of 10 years, Mr. Smith shall not participate in any Academy event or program, either personally or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards," they announced on Friday.
The statement continued: "We would like to express our deep appreciation to Mr Locke for maintaining his composure in exceptional circumstances. We would also like to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their grace and grace in our televised broadcasts. ”
Smith will keep his Oscars for his role in "King Richard."
Smith himself resigned from the Academy last week ahead of the official decision, which would have meant he waived his voting rights but would continue to be nominated, attend and retain his current awards.
On the March 27 broadcast, Locke made a joke about "GI Jane 2," mentioning jada Pinkett Smith, who suffers from alopecia, shaving her head, prompting Smith to take to the stage and hit the comedian.
Smith then yelled at Locke, "Don't put my wife's name in your fucking mouth!" ”
Moments after the slap on the face to hear "Around the World," Smith accepted the Academy Award for Best Actor. Although he apologized to the Academy and quipped that he wished he had been invited back, he did not mention Locke in his speech.
On Monday after the show, Smith took to social media to apologize for his actions, writing that they were "unacceptable and unforgivable."
"Chris, I want to apologize publicly to you," Smith added. "I'm not in the right place, I was wrong. I was embarrassed that my behavior didn't indicate what kind of person I wanted to be. In a world of love and kindness, there is no room for violence. ”
Meanwhile, the Academy tried to carry out damage control, claiming it had asked the actors to leave after being slapped, but he refused. The next day, sources said the group lied about trying to get him to leave.
On Friday, April 1, producer Will Parker continued "Good Morning America" and said he was not involved in the conversation that asked Smith to leave.
"I said, 'Locke has made it clear that he doesn't want to make the bad situation worse.' That was the image of Chris, 'So I advocated what Locke wanted at the time, rather than physically removing Will Smith at the time, because as explained to me now, that was the only option at the time.' ”
Later that day, Smith formally resigned from the Academy, announcing that he would accept any further consequences that might entail for him.
He said in a statement: "The list of people I have hurt is long, including Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and a global audience at home. ” ”
As for Locke, who avoided bringing up the topic at recent performances in Boston and New York City, told the overzealous crowd at the Comedy Cellar on Tuesday to "lower your expectations." I'm not going to fix that. ”