Will Smith feels his Oscar slap controversy may hurt his new film Emancipation: ‘I completely understand…’

Will Smith is making a comeback to the screen months after his controversial appearance at the 94th Academy Awards where he assaulted host Chris Rock on stage.

The actor was subsequently banned by the Academy even though he won Best Actor later that night. The fallout saw his popularity plummet sharply. Now, he is amounting a comeback but is unsure if people will accept him now.

Will’s new film Emancipation is the real life story of a slave named Gordon, known in popular culture as Whipped Peter. He was the subject of controversial photographs that documented the beatings and whippings he received over the course of his life. The film was originally slated to release in May but was postponed in the aftermath of the Oscars slap controversy.

In conversation with Fox 5, Will said about his comeback, “I completely understand — if someone is not ready, I would absolutely respect that and allow them their space to not be ready.” The controversy involved Oscars 2022 host Chris Rock making a joke about Will’s wife, actor Jada Pinkett Smith. Following this, Will walked up to the stage and slapped Chris on his face, angrily telling him to not joke about Jada.

However, he added that his hope is that his actions do not penalise the work of the entire crew of Emancipation. “My deepest concern is my team – Antoine has done what I think is the greatest work of his entire career. The people on this team have done some of the best work of their entire careers, and my deepest hope is that my actions don’t penalize my team. At this point, that’s what I’m working for,” said Will.

Emancipation will now release in theatres this Friday for a limited time before it begins streaming on Apple TV+ from December 9.