Will Smith slaps Chris Rock at Oscars after Jada Pinkett Smith joke

A startling altercation between Will Smith and Chris Rock at the Oscars left attendees at the Dolby Theatre and viewers at home shocked on Sunday night.

Smith walked onto the stage from his front-row seat and slapped Rock after he made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

The joke took aim at Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, saying, “Jada, I love you. ‘G.I. Jane 2,’ can’t wait to see it, all right?”

Rock’s reference was made from the 1997 film “G.I. Jane,’” starring Demi Moore, who shaved her head to portray a fictional Navy Seal candidate.

In 2018, Pinkett Smith revealed she had been diagnosed with alopecia and has since been open about the struggles of hair loss.

Following the exchange on stage, Smith returned to his seat and shouted at Rock to “keep my wife’s name out of your (expletive) mouth.”

The crowd sat stunned as it became evident the smack was unplanned.

Smith later returned to the stage to accept his first-ever Academy Award for best actor for his work in “King Richard.”

He delivered a tearful apology to the Academy but did not mention Rock.

Smith said similar to Richard Williams, who he portrayed in the film, he felt like the protector of his family including his wife.

Following the show, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences issued a statement saying it “does not condone violence of any form.”