It’s still sort of incredible that people continue to relitigate the 2022 “Oscar Slap” only to come to the conclusion that Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith were both at fault. Literally, there have been comments just this week about that. Jada was the target of Rock’s cruel joke, just as she’d been the target of his cruelty and harassment for decades before that night. Following the Oscar Slap, Chris Rock continued to blame JADA, targeting her yet again in his Netflix standup special, which he filmed in her hometown (Baltimore) and where he referred to her as a “bitch” dozens of times, claiming that she “started it.” Perhaps in Chris Rock’s delusional mind, Jada started it by refusing his advances. Well, Jada has more to say about how f–king crazy it was that she got the blame for her husband slapping Chris Rock.
Jada Pinkett Smith is looking back on the aftermath of her husband Will Smith’s Oscars incident.
“It was ridiculous in how far it went,” Jada, 52, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue, reflecting on the rumors that she was somehow to blame for when Will, 55, struck Chris Rock at the 94th Academy Awards.
“But I also understood at the same time. Considering the false narrative that I had cheated on Will or I was like some adulteress, Will had never done that before,” Jada says. “And I think that when we just look at human nature… when you look at the breadcrumbs, people need something to blame.”
“And so people not knowing what was happening behind the scenes, I surely wasn’t surprised that I got blamed,” she adds of how some interpreted the incident. “But I understood that that’s just the human nature of it all.”
She’s right – it’s ridiculous how far it went, and she probably wasn’t surprised that so many people found a way to blame her. My heart still breaks for her when I think about that moment, especially knowing what we know now. She supported Will throughout his Oscar campaign, walking red carpets with him as they played as elite Black Hollywood power couple, even though they had been separated for years. She did that because she genuinely supports him and loves him, and she was there on Oscar night as the wife of a Best Actor nominee. Then Chris Rock – someone who has targeted her and harassed her for many years – got on stage and made fun of her alopecia. All she did was roll her eyes and look disgusted. That’s it. The rest of it was Will.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red and Instar, cover courtesy of People.
– Los Angeles, USA -20220327-The 94th Academy Awards-Arrivals -PICTURED: Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith -PHOTO by: Abby Grant/Cover Images/INSTARimages.com -Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith_4749.jpg This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact Instar Images LLC for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207 This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. Instar Images LLC reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded 
Oscar® nominee Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith during the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673515422, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon 
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith during the live ABC telecast of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673515557, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
Oscar® nominee Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith arrives on the red carpet of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at the Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673541241, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon 
Oscar® nominee Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith arrive on the red carpet of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at the Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673567160, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon 
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith attends the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones celebrating the 94th annual Academy Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 27, 2022 in Beverly Hills, California,Image: 673579090, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Credit line: – / JPI Studios / Avalon
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith attends the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones celebrating the 94th annual Academy Awards at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 27, 2022 in Beverly Hills, California,Image: 673579196, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Credit line: – / JPI Studios / Avalon 
Presenters Elliot Page, J.K. Simmons and Chris Rock backstage at the Oscar® for Original Screenplay to Kenneth Branagh during the live ABC telecast of the 94th Oscars® at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA, on Sunday, March 27, 2022.,Image: 673582693, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Avalon Licensing Ltd. do not claim any Copyright of the attached image WORLD RIGHTS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon 
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