"Emotionally fragile": Joe Rogan's take on Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at Oscars 2022
The Oscars 2022 drama between Chris Rock and Will Smith managed to make it to the Joe Rogan Experience, and the host had a strong take on the issue.
During his conversation with Josh Barnett, Joe called Will Smith out for not being able to take a mild joke. He also blamed it on the rampant glorification of violence and felt that Will had no reason to hit the Oscars host.
He expressed,
"First of all, that whole scene, in that manner, in that place is a great example of what's wrong with the glorification of just being able to go up to someone and smack them in the face."
However, one thing that stood out from the conversation between Rogan and Barnett was when the former described Will Smith's irrational behavior using some harsh words.
He said,
"He was emotionally fragile, and he acted on impulse in a straggeringly stupid way."
Joe Rogan feels Will Smith is living in a "fictional movie"
Will Smith just punched Chris Rock and told him "keep my wife's name out of your f***ing mouth" https://t.co/1f1ytdbMRv
The podcast started with Joe asking Barnett how he felt about the recent Oscars drama involving Will Smith and Chris Rock. The latter tried to make sense of why Will would smack Chris for a mild joke against his wife.
According to him, there could have been better ways to resolve the issue, especially through a conversation among all the involved parties.
Joe and Josh felt the joke was mild and that it did not deserve such a reaction. In fact, both of them agreed that a slap was the last way to do it. The only way to explain the slap, according to Joe Rogan, is if Will believed himself to be a part of a fictional movie.
He said,
"I think what he was doing was saving face. He was doing some weird movie thing. It was like he was getting away with it as if he was living in a fictional movie."
Not only did Joe Rogan blame Will Smith for slapping Chris Rock, but he also felt that Will was "doing some weird movie thing." Joe proceeded to call the entire thing completely irrational and claimed that the actor was trying to save face.
Will Smith slapping Chris Rock sets a bad precedent for comedians
Another important bit of conversation that ensued between the duo was about comedy. Joe Rogan felt that actions like Will's take away the essence and life of comedy. Josh also pointed out how award show hosts are paid to make jokes, just like the mild joke made by Chris Rock during his Oscars presentation.
"It sets a terrible precedent for comedy clubs. Like, are people going to decide that they are going to go on stage and smack the comedian."
Let me tell you something, it’s a very bad practice to walk up on stage and physically assault a Comedian.
Now we all have to worry about who wants to be the next Will Smith in comedy clubs and theaters.
The outcome of Joe and Josh's conversation was that Will's decision to slap Chris Rock for the joke he made about Jada Pinkett during the 2022 Oscars was totally unnecessary. There was no reason for Will to be offended by the joke. In fact, according to viral clips, Will himself initially laughed at the joke before realizing that it had upset his wife.
Joe Rogan wasn't the only person to call Will Smith out for reacting violently towards Chris Rock during the Oscars 2022 presentation. It seems like the general opinion is to condemn such acts and ensure that violence is not glorified.
However, even amongst the majority, Will Smith managed to find some supporters.
Fans who aren't in complete support of Will think there was definitely a deeper reason behind his slap that the audience did not understand. Passing a verdict on such a sensitive issue seems unfair and it is left up to the fans to decide how far Joe is correct and whether Will's slap can be justified.