Wanda Sykes felt ‘physically ill’ after Will Smith, Chris Rock Oscars slap
Global News
'I'm still a little traumatized by it,' said comedian Wanda Sykes, who told Ellen DeGeneres Will Smith should not have been allowed to stay at the Oscars after the slap.
Comedian Wanda Sykes, one of three hosts at the now-infamous 94th Academy Awards, has weighed in on the notorious on-stage slap that shocked audiences around the world.
Sykes, 58, was en route from her trailer back to the Oscars theatre when Will Smith walked on stage to slap comedian Chris Rock for making a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. She did, however, witness the verbal exchange afterward, when Smith told Rock to “Keep my wife’s name out of your f–king mouth!”
In an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Wednesday, Sykes told the host she felt “sickened” and “physically ill” by Smith’s actions.
“I just felt so awful for my friend, Chris,” said Sykes. “I’m still a little traumatized by it.”
The comedian hosted Sunday’s Oscars ceremony alongside Amy Schumer and Regina Hall.
Sykes also said Smith should not have been allowed to stay in The Dolby Theatre or accept his Best Actor award for King Richard after the altercation.
“For them to let him stay in that room and enjoy the rest of the show and accept his award, I was like, ‘How gross is this? This is just the wrong message,'” she said. “You assault somebody, you get escorted out the building and that’s it. For them to let him continue, I thought it was gross.”
“Plus, I wanted to be able to run out after he won and say, ‘Unfortunately Will couldn’t be here tonight…'” she joked.
