Will Smith won his first Oscar less than an hour after he walked on stage and slapped Chris Rock at the 94th Academy Awards. While he received a standing ovation from nearly the entire room as he emotionally strolled back onto the stage to accept his Best Actor trophy for portraying Richard Williams in 2021’s King Richard, not everyone chose to rise in his honor. Two people who opted to remain in their seats were Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher, and in an Oct. 7 interview with C magazine, the actress explained why.
“The idea of leading by example only makes sense when you actually have someone to lead. We have our tiny little tribe here at home, and never once do I want to tell them to do something if I’m not willing to do it myself,” she explained. Her “little tribe” includes her and Ashton’s adorable children, Wyatt, 8, and Dimitri, 5. The 39-year-old Friends with Benefits star continued, “Not standing up to me was a no-brainer, but what was shocking to me was how many people did stand up. I thought, wow, what a time we’re living in that rather than do what’s right, people focus on doing what looks good. It’s insane to me.”
As fans know, the 54-year-old actor decided to smack the 57-year-old comedian after he made a joke about Jada Pinkett-Smith‘s bald head. Will’s slap was a hot topic for quite some time after it occurred, with fans and celebrities alike giving their hot takes on the matter and wondering what type of repercussion Will would face — if any. The Academy decided on a plan of action just under two weeks after the incident, which was dubbed “The Slap Heard Around The World”. In the April 8 announcement released by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson, they wrote, “The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards.” They went on to condemn the physical assault as “unacceptable and harmful behavior” and expressed their “gratitude” for how Chris handled the shocking situation.
Will broke his silence on the event in July via a lengthy apology video he shared on YouTube. He spoke about the “personal work” he had done over the months following the event and then apologized directly to Chris. “I’ve reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that he’s not ready to talk and when he is, he will reach out. So I will I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you. My behavior was unacceptable,” Will said.
Meanwhile, Mila has found herself in the headlines quite a bit over the last year over various statements regarding her personal opinions and general life. At the end of September, she told E! News that her household has an open-door policy. “That includes the bathroom,” she revealed. “It’s just one of those where, for better or for worse, as a family and the kids have all kind of embodied bodily function as a very standard norm.”
A year prior, she made headlines for revealing that her kids don’t shower every day. However, she defended the practice while on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and said she showers her body every day and that her “intent every day is to bathe [her] children.” She noted, though, that sometimes, it’s just not that simple. “I wake up every day, like, ‘Today I’m going to shower my kids.’ And then bedtime happens, and I forgot to feed them…” Mila is certainly not the only mother who has struggled to stick to a tight schedule with little ones running around!
