It has been reported that Will Smith has been left "embarrassed and hurt" following the news of Chris Rock's Netflix special.
Rock, who has recently been making headlines for his latest comedy special, hit out at the 54-year-old actor almost exactly a year after the controversial Oscars slap.
Back in March 2022, viewers were left speechless as they watched Smith storm the stage at the 94th Academy Awards after the 58-year-old comedian cracked a few jokes about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
Not only did he physically attack Rock, but he also shouted "keep my wife's name out your f****** mouth", much to the shock of those in attendance, as well as viewers at home.
But it looks like the comedian got his own back via his Netflix special.
During the show, he said: "Will Smith practices selective outrage. Everybody really knows I had nothing to do with that s***. I didn't have any 'entanglements.'"
Rock said during the special that "everybody in the world" called Will a "b****" after the news broke of Pinkett Smith's "entanglement" with another man, and added that he tried to reach out to him about it but claimed he didn't pick up.
The comedian then went on to repeatedly refer to Smith as a "b****."
He then joked: "Everybody. And who's he hit? Me, a n**** he knows he can beat. That is some b****-a** s***."
Prior to the show's debut, he also managed to sneak another few low blows while testing out some of his new material - some of which landed well with the live audience, while others, not so much.
Talking to a packed venue at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theater, the Death at a Funeral star spoke of the controversial incident saying: "Will Smith practices selective outrage. People who are in the know, know that s*** had nothing to do with me."
He continued: "The thing people wanna know... did it hurt? Hell yeah it hurt," he was quoted as saying at one gig as per the HuffPost. "He played Muhammad Ali! I played Pookie [his role in New Jack City]. Even in animated movies, I’m a zebra, he’s a f****** shark. I got hit so hard, I heard 'Summertime' ringing in my ears."
According to the New York Post, at a different event, Rock also joked that he watched Smith's new movie Emancipation just so he could watch the actor "getting whipped."
"I rooted for Will Smith my whole life," he told the audience. But Rock then told fans that he's "hate-watching" Smith’s latest movie, in which he plays a tortured, escaped slave.
"The other day, I watched Emancipation just so I could watch him getting whipped."
While the taunt was supposed to be a joke, it didn't sit entirely well with everyone given the sensitive nature of the film but thankfully, that one didn't make the cut during his Netflix ride.
Elsewhere, he also jibed further at Pinkett Smith's alleged "affair" with rapper August Alsina.
"His wife was f****** her son’s friend," Rock said on Saturday, March 4. "Now, I normally would not talk about this s***. But for some reason [they] put that s*** on the internet... We [have] all been cheated on. Everybody in here’s been cheated on.
"None of us have ever been interviewed by the person that cheated on us on television."
He added: "She hurt him way more than he hurt me, OK?"
It seems as though Rock has well and truly won this battle as it has been reported that Smith has been left "hurt and embarrassed" by the content.
A source told Entertainment Weekly that while the actor didn't watch the show himself, he heard about the jokes through word of mouth.
"Will is embarrassed and hurt by what Chris said about him and his family in his Netflix special. He didn’t watch it, but he had people tell him what Chris said. It’s everywhere when you look online and on social media, so Will and Jada have seen comments about it."
The source also told the outlet that Smith is "upset" that Netflix gave Rock "this platform" to express his views.
"Will is also upset that Netflix was a part of this and thinks Chris insulting Jada again is below the belt," the source added. "He is upset that Netflix gave Chris this platform to share these messages and thinks it’s distasteful."
Another source who spoke of Rock's side of the story revealed that the comedian is now ready to move on.
"He said everything he wanted to say," the source told ET. "It was funny, self-deprecating, and thought-provoking. Chris is ready to move on."
Selective Outrage is available to watch on Netflix.
