The 94th Academy Awards went viral thanks to an incident involving Will Smith and stand-up comedian Chris Rock.
During the event, Will Smith walked on the stage and slapped Chris Rock because Rock, who was hosting, was joking about his wife’s hair.
Smith didn’t let the joke slide and decided to act out. The incident was caught live on national television.
Since then, many people have argued and picked sides whether to defend Will Smith or Chris Rock.
Some believe Will Smith went too far and some praised him for defending his wife. Professional boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. is among the people who backed Smith.
In a video spread on social media, Smith revealed that Mayweather called him for 10 days straight following the incident. He said Mayweather was checking on him every day due to Smith receiving a lot of backlash.
“[Floyd and I] met each other, we’ve seen each other around, but we weren’t like, friends. And, the day after the Oscars, for 10 days, he called me every day. And he was like, ‘Hey, you know you are the champ, right? Are you good? You know you are the champ, right? I want you to hear my voice say it.’” Smith said.
The 54-year-old Philadelphia-born was telling the story while Mayweather can be seen nodding in agreement in the back.
Smith added, “Every day he called me. And it’s like, that’s my dude forever right there.”
Both Will Smith and Chris Rock decided not to press charges on each other. Rock apologized right away following the incident and Smith apologized a while later on a video.
Will Smith gave a private screen of Emancipation to @FloydMayweather last night. Will told a story — Floyd called him 10 days straight after Oscars incident w/ Chris Rock. At the time, Floyd & Will were just acquaintances, but Mayweather was concerned about Smith. A good friend. pic.twitter.com/r2OwBusGN2
— michael j. babcock (@mikejbabcock) October 28, 2022