*Being close friends with Chris Rock and Will Smith hasn’t been easy for Tyler Perry, who was present at the Oscars in February when the “Men In Black” star slapped Chris across the face.
During a conversation with Gayle King as part of the Directors Series at the Tribeca Film Festival on Monday, Tyler recounted his shock after witnessing the now-infamous incident as he candidly discussed the aftermath of the situation that stunned not just Hollywood but millions of viewers at home.
“I was there close up, I left early to go and check on Chris because it was wrong in no uncertain terms,” the 52-year-old expressed about the slap, adding that he made sure to tell Will that his actions were out of line. But it appeared that Will was just as stunned by his unusual outburst as his industry peers, with Tyler going on to mention how the father-of-three ended up feeling “devastated” by the fiasco. “He couldn’t believe what happened.”
Will, who went on to win Best Actor at the awards ceremony for his role in “King Richard,” struggled to contain his emotions as he tried to make sense of what triggered him to get on stage and assault Chris over a joke that many people didn’t believe had justified the act of putting hands on someone — especially not at the Oscars. Pictures of Will after the incident saw him talking to Bradley Cooper and Tyler, but according to the “Madea” actor, he wasn’t trying to comfort Will during their chat. He says he was trying to deescalate the situation and noted that being friends with both of them has been “very difficult.”
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