Watch Will Smith punch Chris Rock at the Oscars, then win Best Actor

Will Smith, who has been a Hollywood star for nearly thirty years now, won the Academy Award as Best Actor. The former Fresh Prince of Bel-Air won the prize during Sunday’s 94th Academy Awards for his performance as Richard Williams, father to tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams, in the biopic King Richard — which is also nominated for Best Picture.

However, the victory will be forever obscured by the shocking incident from earlier that night. After Best Documentary presenter Chris Rock cracked a joke at the expense of Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith took to the stage and slapped the comedian across the face. After the incident, Smith cursed at Rock and cut off the telecast.

As international broadcasts of the ceremony confirmed, Smith told Rock to “keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth!” Nothing about the moment felt staged, and no one involved with the ceremony immediately clarified what happened.

Rock formerly hosted the Oscars in 2016, where he made a joke about Jada Pinkett-Smith’s boycott of the Oscars, essentially saying that she wasn’t invited anyway. Meanwhile, Pinkett-Smith’s shaved head is due in part to her ongoing struggle with Alopecia — a condition that causes hair loss — which she has spoken about publicly in the past.

Myung Chun/ Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Smith acknowledged the circumstances during his acceptance speech.

“Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family,” he said, slowly succumbing to tears. “In this time in my life, in this moment, I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do and be in this world. […]My life is filled with the call to be a good friend and lover. To protect them. To be a source of strength for my people. To do the things we do, you have to be willing to suffer. It’s okay for people to talk about your character. People must disrespect you. You gotta smile and pretend that’s OK.”

Smith addressed the matter in writing. “I want to apologize to the Academy, I want to apologize to all the nominees. This is such a wonderful moment. The award is an honor and I’m not sad about it. It’s not about winning, it’s about being able to shine a light on all of the people.” He continued by thanking Venus and Serena Williams, and much of the cast and crew of King Richard.

King RichardSmith was nominated third-time for the award. Like the previous two times — 2001’s Ali and 2006’s Happyness: The pursuit of Happiness — it’s for the lead role in a biographical drama.

In this year’s Oscars, Smith beat out fellow nominees Andrew Garfiled (tick, tick…BOOM!), Benedict Cumberbatch (Dog Power), Javier Bardem (The Ricardos). Denzel WashingtonMacbeth’s Tragic Enduring Tragedy

King RichardIt is available for streaming on HBO Max at the moment.