American comedian, Chris Rock, has apologized to Oscars winner, Will Smith, his wife, Jada Pinkett, and the entire Smith family, for the “disrespect and disregard I displayed”.
Recall that Smith walked on to the stage at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday evening and slapped Rock, who was there to present the award for best documentary.
Rock had made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who has a shaved head and has spoken publicly about her hair loss.
After hitting Rock, Smith returned to his seat and yelled profanities at the comedian in an altercation that was censored from the US broadcast of the awards show.
Rock, on his Instagram said: ” As a comedian, it can be difficult to understand which lines are to be crossed and which ones aren’t.
“Last night, I crossed a line that I shouldn’t have and paid the enormous price of my reputation as a renown comedian.
“Comedy is never about poking fun at or making lite of people with major ordeals happening in their lives.
“Comedy is about using real life circumstances to create laughter and bring light to an otherwise dark world.
“With that said, I sincerely apologize to my friend’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Will Smith and the rest of the Smith family for the disrespect and disregard I displayed, which was unfortunately broadcast for the world to see.
“I hope that, with time, forgiveness can come of this situation and we can all be better, more considerate people in the end.”