Jimmy Kimmel went in hard with jokes about Will Smith's infamous slap as he hosted the Oscars last night, not allowing anyone time to be bored of hearing about it.
Did you know that Will Smith slapped Chris Rock last year? For those who have been living under a rock (there's a joke in there somewhere), here's a little reminder.
Rock hosted the ceremony and began firing out jokes at the expense of some members of the audience. When he turned his attention to Jada Pinkett Smith, her husband didn't take too kindly and made his way on stage and planted a right hand across Rock's face.
In an interview with Hollywood Reporter, this year's host Kimmel, 55, explained that he would "beat the s***" out of anyone who attempted to assault him this year, providing that it wasn't Dwayne Johnson.
Need a reminder of the infamous slap? Watch below:Kimmel also mentioned that he would have to mention the infamous events of the previous year, saying: "Well, whatever I say about it, it’s going to have to be great, right?"
Acknowledging that people may be "bored" of talking about the slap, he added: "So much has been said and there’s so much focus on it. I obviously don’t want to make the whole monologue about that, but it would be ridiculous not to mention it."
A man true to his word, the talk show host did indeed mention the slap... a few times, in fact.
During his opening monologue he addressed the audience: "We know this is a special night for you. We want you to have fun. We want you to feel safe. And most importantly, we want me to feel safe.
"So we have strict policies in place. If anyone in this theater commits an act of violence at any point during the show, you will be awarded the Oscar for Best Actor and permitted to give a 19-minute-long speech."
Check out Kimmel's opening monologue below:Kimmel made the jokes due to Smith being allowed to stay at the awards ceremony last year despite assaulting the host and shouting at him from his seat, later being awarded the Best Actor award for his role in King Richard and making a teary speech.
The 55-year-old wasn't done there. He referenced the steps the Academy had taken to make things safer this year, as well as poking fun at those who comforted Smith last year.
"Seriously, The Academy has a crisis team in place," Kimmel said. "If anything unpredictable or violent happens during the ceremony. Just do what you did last year: nothing. Sit there and do absolutely nothing. Maybe even give the assailant a hug."
Kimmel then challenged anyone who wanted to "get jiggy with it," making it known that he has friends in the audience who would defend him such as Pedro Pascal, Michelle Yeoh, and Michael B. Jordan.
Later on in the show, just before he announced the presenters for the Best Documentary category, Kimmel said: "Hopefully it goes off this time without a hitch, or at least without Hitch," referencing Smith's 2005 movie. "Please put your hands together and then keep them to yourself," Kimmel finished.
This year's ceremony was notably longer than previous years due to every award being broadcast live, and around the two-hour mark Kimmel acknowledged that the evening was a bit of a slog by saying: "At this point in the show, it kind of makes you miss the slapping a little bit, right?"
At the close of the show, Kimmel couldn't help but get a few final digs in by stating: "Great work, crisis team," before heading over to a sign that read "Number of Oscars Telecasts Without Incident," where he changed the number to "001."
Maybe this will draw a line under the controversy and everyone can move on with their lives... Either way, Smith won't be back at the awards ceremony for another nine years at least.
