Carrie Bickmore question that made Will Smith’s publicist end interview
Videos of Will Smith are resurfacing after the infamous Oscars slap, including the time Carrie Bickmore’s interview was cut off after she asked the actor a personal question.
The whole world is talking about Will Smith after he stormed the stage during the Oscars and slapped presenter Chris Rock in the face.
It shocked many, not just because it was a brazen act of violence, but because it had people questioning whether they had been wrong about the type of person Smith was all along.
Online sleuths are now trying to uncover other telling moments they may have missed.
A clip from 2012 when a furious Smith slapped a prankster who tried to kiss him while promoting Men in Black 3 in Russia has resurfaced and gone viral online.
But his past interviews are also getting a closer look, including a recent chat with Australia’s Carrie Bickmore on The Project.
In January, Smith appeared on the show via video link promoting his Oscar-winning film King Richardand recently-released memoir.
Bickmore asked the actor about life moments mentioned in the memoir, including the time his son Jaden Smith asked to be emancipated at 15 years old and Smith’s relationship with his own father.
Smith told Bickmore his childhood trauma helped him become a better actor, because he understood different characters and their mental anguish. He has previously said his dad was violent and an alcoholic.
While he was more than happy to answer questions about those personal topics, the interview came to an awkward ending when Bickmore asked about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith.
“You’ve been so open about your relationship with Jada recently, what do you wish younger Will knew about …” Bickmore said, referring to the couple’s nonmonogamous relationship, before she was cut off.
A shocked Carrie was told by a publicist off-screen: “Carrie, I’m very sorry but we’re going to have to wrap the interview”.
Smith joked that that was the question she had been trying to ask the whole time, to which Bickmore laughed and said “we just got to the juicy stuff” before thanking Smith for his time.
It was a distasteful joke about Pinkett Smith that led to the infamous Oscars slap.
“Jada, I love ya. G.I Jane 2, can’t wait to see it,” Rock joked, in reference to Pinkett Smith’s shaved head.
Actress Demi Moore famously cut her hair for the 1997 film G.I. Jane.
Pinkett Smith has been open with her struggles with alopecia areata, an auto-immune disorder that leads to hair loss.
The camera cut to Pinkett Smith and Smith in the audience.
Smith was initially seen laughing while his wife was visibly unimpressed and rolled her eyes.
Moments later, Smith stormed the stage to confront Rock, slapping him in the face.
When Smith returned to his seat he shouted “keep my wife’s name out your f***ing mouth” as the audience fell silent.
Less than 30 minutes later, Smith won the Oscar for best actor and in his acceptance speech apologised to the Academy and fellow nominees but not Rock.
The next day, Smith posted a statement on Instagram apologising to Rock.
“Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally,” he wrote.
“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has launched a formal review into the incident, saying it “condemns the actions of Mr Smith at last night’s show”.