Reuters has confirmed that an image purportedly showing Chris Rock wearing a cheek pad at the Oscars on Sunday night has been digitally altered.
When an image began circulating online appearing to show the 57-year-old comic wearing a protective pad on his cheek, the theory that the physical altercation between Rock and Will Smith was staged gained traction among many on social media
The reality is, some users on social media platforms had begun sharing an altered version of a Reuters photograph, made to look as though Rock was wearing a pad on his cheek when Smith hit him at the 2022 Academy Awards.
According to the news agency, the altered image - seen in the tweet below - belongs to Reuters, but was digitally modified to give the aforementioned theory credence.
Sharing the altered image, one person wrote: "If you think the slap was real. Then why is Chris Rock wearing a prosthetic pad on his cheek? Plus his hands are behind his back and he leans forward. Fake fake fake. All for ratings."
Below is the original Reuters photograph.
The "patch" in the original photo is merely a result of Rock's natural skin tone and wrinkles, the patch seen in the photo being shared to fuel these false rumors is even more defined and is the result of editing. You can view a direct comparison between the altered and original photos here.
In other photos from the Oscar ceremony on Sunday night (see below), Rock has some light stubble. And yet this stubble appears absent from the photo circulating online, despite apparently being more "high definition". This again goes to show that the image is a hoax.
Below are some more Reuters photos featuring the altercation, none of which show Rock wearing a face pad:
Rock is yet to comment on the incident which saw Smith head to the stage to hit him while he was presenting the award for Best Documentary Feature. He had made a joke about the Oscar winner's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, in relation to her shaved head.
Smith later revealed in a social media post, in which he apologized to Rock, that "a joke about Jada's medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally."
It has been reported by some outlets, including TMZ, that Rock was unaware that Pinkett Smith had alopecia, an autoimmune disorder that causes one's hair to fall out.
In any case, the comic decided against pressing charges against Smith, despite the furor that broke out in response to the actor's shocking conduct.
