“That Was a Rage That Had Been Bottled…”Will Smith Revisits Oscars Slap On ‘The Daily Show’

Emancipation star Will Smith visited The Daily Show with Trevor Noah to talk his new film, the infamous Oscars slap and more.

Will Smith is continuing to open up about ‘The Slap’ at the Oscars in March. The Emancipation star went to The Daily Show with Trevor Noah to discuss his new Apple TV+ film, upcoming National Geographic show Pole to Pole and find acceptance in the now-infamous Oscars night.

After being questioned by Noah, Will recollected that it was “a horrific night” with many “complexities” and said he “lost it.”

“And I guess what I would say, you just never know what somebody is going through,” Smith added. “I was going through something that night. Not that that justifies my behavior at all.”

Smith continued that it was most painful that his actions made it “hard for other people.”

“And it’s like I understood the idea where they say hurt people hurt people,” he said. “That was a rage that had been bottled for a really long time.”

Noah then brought up Smith’s best-selling memoir Will, where the actor discussed growing up with fear of conflict, having witnessed his mother being abused by his father.

“It was a lot of things,” Smith responded. “It was the little boy that watched his father beat up his mother, you know. All of that just bubbled up in that moment.”

Watch Smith’s full interview with Noah below.