It was a moment that shocked Hollywood and now, three years on, actor Will Smith’s attack on comedian Chris Rock at the Academy Awards is still one of the most talked about events in Oscars history. 

But while Chris, 60, was left ‘hurt’ and clearly shaken by the event, Will has ignored calls for him to be ‘cancelled’ from Hollywood, and instead made an explosive comeback last week, releasing new music with lyrics that appear to mock his ‘assault’ on Chris. 

One report has labelled Will’s new album, ‘Based on a True Story’ as ‘unfiltered and unapologetic’ as he raps, ‘Will Smith is cancelled/ You can’t cancel no icon’ and goes on to make a joke about how he’s unlikely to be ‘nominated’ for an award. 

Will, 56, also ridiculed the incident in his 2024 The Bad Boys: Ride or Die, with his character being slapped at the end of the film – a clear nod to the Oscars event. 

And now a source says Chris is ‘furious’ that Will – who declared to fans that he was on a spiritual journey of ‘self-discovery’ –  appears to be exploiting what has been described as ‘shocking and unprecedented’ behaviour for his own gain. 

An insider says, ‘Chris finds the whole ‘changed man’ narrative that Will is peddling beyond infuriating. He doesn’t buy it for one moment, especially as he went ahead and mocked the slap in The Bad Boys. To Chris, the fact that he’s joking about it really speaks volumes about how sorry he really is. 

‘All Will has done is whine to everyone about how hard he’s tried to make amends, which is only making Chris even more bitter. He’s telling everyone this is just one big act on Will’s part and believes he is the same smug, self-serving guy he’s always been.’

At the time of the event in March 2022, Chris, who was presenting at the 94th Academy Awards, made a joke about Will’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith – comparing her shaved head to Demi Moore’s character in the 1997 film, G.I Jane.

Jada, 53, suffers from alopecia – a condition that causes hair loss – although Chris’ brother Kenny later insisted that Chris had not been aware of this at the time of his joke.

As attendees looked on in horror, Will then repeatedly shouted, ‘Keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth’ before storming onto the stage and smacking Chris across the face.

Will was then allowed to stay on through the event and went on to scoop up his award for Best Actor for his sports biopic King Richard, despite Academy representatives insisting that he was asked to leave .

However, the Bad Boys star was later banned from attending any Oscars events for ten years and resigned his membership to the Academy.

But while Will later apologised to Chris in a video on his YouTube channel four months later and called his behaviour ‘unacceptable’, the source says Chris would have preferred to speak with Will in person when he was ready.

They say, ‘Maybe if he’d come to Chris in person and respectfully apologised this would feel more sincere, but Chris insists that has never happened.’

The insider also reveals how Chris believes that Will’s new journey of personal growth and the narrative that he wasn’t ‘thinking straight’ and was not in control is further proof of Will ‘playing the victim’.

They add, ‘Chris has been doing his best to put this all behind him and just forget about it, but Will keeps bringing it up. He’s now referencing it on his new album and yet again playing the victim, even though he was clearly the aggressor.

‘It puts the whole apology tour Will did into perspective. Clearly, he was full of it and was only saying what he thought will curry favour with the public. He was never really sorry.

‘As far as he’s concerned Will is nothing but a narcissist who will never truly have any remorse for what he did. He wishes he would just go away and stop milking this for attention.’

At the time of the slap, US Film Producer Will Packer revealed how the police had been ready to arrest Will for ‘battery’ but that a shell-shocked Chris had repeatedly said that he didn’t want to press charges. 

Will said, ‘They were saying, you know, this is battery, was a word they used in that moment. They said, ‘We will go get him. We are prepared. We’re prepared to get him right now.’ 

And now the source says that this latest humiliation has left Chris regretting his decision not to press charges.

They say, ‘At the time he thought that was the right move not to press charges because he didn’t want to escalate things. He actually thought Will would come to him and they could talk things out and find some peace. 

‘But instead, Will just did everything through the media. Everything he’s done has been for his own gain and has been so insincere. Chris is disgusted, but not all that surprised.’

Meanwhile, Chris appears determined to make his own comeback and attended his first Oscars event following the incident last month. 

Returning to the Vanity Fair Oscars Party, the comedian, who attended alongside his eldest daughter, was seen chatting to Hollywood hotshots such as Timothy Chalamet and Jeff Bezos. 

And the source says that at this point Will has left Chris with no choice but to speak out when the right time comes. 

The insider says, ‘At this point Chris is saying he’s going to have no choice but to answer back the next time he does a stand-up show. 

‘He was hoping they’d have moved past it by now, but since Will wants to drag this on, he may as well profit off it again too. He can’t stand the guy and would rather never say his name again, but he’s not going to let him get the last word in on this.’