Apple releasing Will Smith film ‘Emancipation’ this year despite Oscars drama

• Will Smith’s new film “Emancipation” will be released in December.
• The film is directed by Antoine Fuqua, whose 2001 thriller “Training Day” won Denzel Washington an Oscar.
• Smith was suspended from the Academy Awards for 10 years after his slap at Chris Rock.

Apple said Monday that Will Smith’s new film “Emancipation” will be released in December, less than a year after his slap at Chris Rock at the Oscars stunned millions worldwide.

In the wake of Smith’s assault on comedian Rock, which received global outrage and resulted in Smith’s 10-year suspension from the Academy Awards, it was widely believed that the slavery drama had been delayed.

Apple, however, made the unexpected revelation that the tainted actor’s next film will premiere in cinemas on December 2 and begin streaming on Apple TV+ the following week.

Apple will be able to submit “Emancipation” to compete at the Oscars next March, less than a year after making history as the first streaming service to win the best picture with “CODA.”

Smith had maintained a pretty low profile since that night at the Academy Awards when he won the best actor for his portrayal in “King Richard” mere minutes after he had attacked Rock for making a joke about his wife and marched on stage to confront him.

The former “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” actor issued a public apology shortly after the event. He offered to meet with Rock “whenever you’re ready to talk” in an emotional, social media video posted in July.

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The 54-year-old also resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; nevertheless, the organization did not remove his best actor prize. His 10-year ban from attending the ceremony does not bar him from being nominated for Oscars.

This past weekend, Smith attended a screening of “Emancipation” in Washington, DC, hosted by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Smith plays a slave fugitive on a dangerous trek north from Louisiana in search of freedom.

His demeanor Peter is influenced by the infamous portrait of an enslaved person named “Whipped Peter,” whose back was disfigured by flogging on a plantation.

The film is directed by Antoine Fuqua, whose 2001 police thriller “Training Day” won Denzel Washington an Academy Award for best actor.

“Emancipation” was initially scheduled to be filmed in Georgia, but production was relocated last year when the southern U.S. state passed a voting rights law that critics believe is meant to reduce voter participation among Black and other marginalized communities.

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