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WATCH: Chris Rock also poked fun of Jada and Will Smith during the 2016 Oscars

By SAAB LARIOSA Published Mar 30, 2022 2:53 pm

It seems like Chris Rock has always had a penchant for the Smiths.

After Will Smith and Chris Rock's physical altercation during the 94th Academy Awards went viral this week, a video from Rock's 2016 Academy Awards hosting stint has resurfaced online.

ICYMI, Smith went up to this year's Oscars stage and slapped Rock after the comedian poked fun at Jada Pinkett Smith’s appearance, comparing her shaved head to Demi Moore’s hairstyle in the 1997 film G.I. Jane. Jada is diagnosed with alopecia, an autoimmune disorder that causes one's hair to fall out.

During his Best Actor acceptance speech, Smith said that "love will make you do crazy things."

Posted by the Oscars on YouTube, the resurfaced video shows Rock as the host of the awards ceremony that took place in 2016. He was invited to be the emcee of the event after the awards show was entangled in the #OscarsSoWhite controversy, wherein it was criticized for its lack of black nominees.

Rock centered his opening monologue around the controversy, saying “If they nominated hosts, I wouldn’t even get this job.” He goes on to list the black celebrities who chose to boycott the Oscars that year, particularly focusing on Will and Jada’s decision

"What happened this year? People went mad. Spike [Lee] got mad and Jada got mad and Will went mad. Everybody went mad,” Rock said. "Jada said she’s not coming, Jada’s gonna boycott the Oscars."

"Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties,” he then quipped, “I wasn’t invited, but that’s not an invitation I would turn down."

He went on to joke about Will not receiving a nomination for the film, Concussion.

"It’s not fair that Will was this good and he didn’t get nominated, you’re right. It’s also not fair that Will was paid $20 million for Wild Wild West, okay?"

Wild Wild West is Smith’s 1999 steampunk cowboy film during his early days as an actor.

The altercation between the two actors has gained widespread attention since March 28, with both parties issuing public apologies on their social media channels.