Chris Rock to speak up for the first time since Oscar controversary

• Chris Rock to finally have his say in new stand-up special.
• He will deliver his first stand-up special on Saturday night since the Oscars.
• It will be shown live on Netflix at 10 p.m. EST.

Chris Rock is about to speak up for the first time since Will Smith slapped him on the Academy Awards stage a year ago.

The 58-year-old comic will deliver his first stand-up special on Saturday night since the Oscars. In “Chris Rock: Selective Outrage,” which will be shown live on Netflix at 10 p.m. EST.

Not only will Rock perform stand-up for nearly an hour from the Hippodrome Theatre in Baltimore, but Netflix will also bookend the special with commentary from a who’s who of celebrities in its first-ever live event.

Paul McCartney, Jerry Seinfeld, Matthew McConaughey, Cedric the Entertainer, Ice-T, and two Oscars hosts from the previous year, Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer, will also appear on the pre-show, which starts at 9:30 p.m. Dana Carvey and David Spade will host guests after Rock’s performance, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Arsenio Hall, and JB Smoove.

While Smith has apologised and discussed the incident numerous times since last March, Rock has shunned the typical venues where celebrities frequently express their emotions. He refused to meet with Oprah Winfrey and turned down numerous requests from media organisations for an exclusive, in-depth interview.

Instead, Rock has spent the most of the past year touring brand-new music as part of his Ego Death tour. The performances on the shows, which were pre-announced before the 2022 Oscars, included Dave Chappelle and Kevin Hart.

Although it has never been more than a small part of his performances, Rock has frequently incorporated jokes and musings about the slap while on the road. There is no assurance that he will discuss Saturday night, but it is widely anticipated that he will and he has long said that this would be his preferred platform.

Only one week before the March 12 Oscars, where Jimmy Kimmel, this year’s host, is certain to bring up the slap again, Rock will now occupy the cultural spotlight after much digesting.

After the events of the previous year, Smith decided to leave the film academy. For ten years, Smith was prohibited from attending all academy functions, including the Oscars.

Motion picture Academy President Janet Yang expressed remorse about how the situation was handled at the annual luncheon for candidates held last month, calling the academy’s response “inadequate.” The school has subsequently established a crisis communications team, according to Bill Kramer, the academy’s chief executive, to better plan for and respond to the unexpected.

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