In an interview with the Los Angeles Times published Monday, Kenny, 42, told the newspaper how the event took place – in which King Richard star confronted Chris Rock on stage after the comedian told a funny GI Jane about his wife Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith (who is known to have alopecia) and slapped him – continued to affect him over the days. “It eats me to watch it again and again because you have seen a loved one get attacked and there is nothing you can do about it,” the actor and businessman said in the report. He commented that his brother was not a “threat” to Smith, who “did not respect” Rock at the time and “underestimated” him in front of millions of Oscar viewers (the ABC broadcast of the Oscars attracted over 16 million spectators, more than last year – but still much lower than in previous years). While Smith referred to the incident both later that night as he received his Oscar for King Richard, and later apologized directly to Rock in a social media post, Kenny shared his view that the apology on stage – where he did not mention Rock, but instead told the Academy and its candidates that he was sorry – it was not enough and affected the way he perceives the whole event. “I might have seen it differently if he had initially apologized when he went on stage and cried and received the award, but he did not, so that tells me it’s something else,” he said. The cultural trigger prompted the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to launch a formal review of whether his conduct required any action on his part, which could include suspension of the Academy’s Academy – except that had already resigned. Smith said in a statement to the organization that his actions at the Oscars were “shocking, painful and unforgivable” and that he “betrayed” the confidence of the Academy. He also apologized to the Rock family, writing: “The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my best friends and loved ones, everyone in attendance and the global audience at home.” But Kenny, who is one of Chris Rock’s six brothers, says he does not accept this apology. “I do not think it was genuine,” he told the LA Times. “I think his journalist and the people who work under him probably advised him to do it.” Kenny also said he would like to see the Academy revoke the Oscar he received that night for King Richard and ban him from attending future Oscar ceremonies. He said he also believed his brother was unaware of Pinkett Smith’s alopecia. “The joke was funny,” Kenny said. “It was not a hilarious joke, but I know that if he had known he had alopecia, he would not have joked about it. But he did not know. “ Kenny went on to say that Smith “should have been taken out of there” and that he blamed the Academy. Smith’s mother, Carolyn, also briefly shared her views on what happened to her son, telling CNN subsidiary WPVI-TV that the slap came as a surprise: “He is a very uniform person. This is the first time I have seen him leave. “For the first time in his life, I’ve never seen him do that.” As the aftermath continued, Netflix withdrew from a project set up with Smith called Fast and Loose, quietly putting the film behind it. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.
