Whoopi Goldberg Reacts To Will Smith, Chris Rock Oscars Slap On ‘The View’ – ‘He Snapped’

Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on live television at the Academy Awards last night. On Monday morning, Whoopi Goldberg gave her thoughts on the altercation on her ABC talk show “The View.”

In case you missed the slap, you can check it out below.

Backstory: Internet Erupts After Will Smith Slaps Chris Rock At The Oscars

Goldberg Weighs In

“I think it was a lot of stuff probably built up,” Goldberg said, as she argued that Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith had been targeted by jokes for years. She added that host Regina Hall even made a joke about their open marriage earlier in the show. 

“I think he overreacted,” Goldberg continued. “I think he had one of those moments where it was like [goddamn it], just stop. I get it, not everybody acts the way we would like them to act under pressure. And he snapped.”

Addressing calls to strip Smith of the Oscar he won for King Richard last night, Goldberg said, “We’re not going to take that Oscar from him. There will be consequences I’m sure, but I don’t think that’s what they’re going to do, particularly because Chris [Rock] said, ‘Listen, I’m not pressing any charges.’”

“I was thinking comedians are in danger everywhere,” Joy Behar chimed in to say. “They want us to be edgy, to go out there and say what everyone’s thinking…and then they get mad. If you’re upset about something, walk off.”

Related: Devout Christian Denzel Washington Had Wise Words For Will Smith At The Oscars

Rock Not Pressing Charges

The Los Angeles Police Department has revealed that Rock has decided not to press charges against Smith.  

“LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program. The incident involved one individual slapping another,” the LAPD told Variety.

“The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report,” the statement continued. 

Related: Jon Voight Weighs In On Will Smith’s Actions Toward Chris Rock At Oscars

Smith Apologizes 

Smith himself also apologized in his emotional speech accepting his Oscar.

“I wanna apologize to the Academy. I wanna apologize to all my fellow nominees,” he said. “This is a beautiful moment and I’m not crying for winning an award. It’s not about winning an award for me, it’s about being able to shine light on all of the people. Love will make you do crazy things.”

Sources have said that the Academy is holding emergency Zoom meetings to try and figure out whether or not to strip Smith of his Oscar. It remains to be seen whether or not they will end up doing that.