Will Smith hopes the slap' will not punish his Emancipation' teamWill Smith hopes that with the upcoming release of his film Emancipation', people will not punish his team for the Oscar slap.
by Thandeka Mthethwa
29-11-2022 12:44
in Entertainment
Will Smith is allowing people space to not be ready to get over the slap. Images via Instagram: @willsmith
Award-winning actor Will Smith has said that he is okay if some movie goers are not ready to forgive him for the infamous Oscar slap against Chris Rock but he pleads with people to not penalise his team that worked tirelessly on the Emancipation, production.
--
The 53-year-old said, I completely understand that if someone is not ready, I would absolutely respect that and allow them their space to not be ready .
ALSO READ: Where there's a Will Is Emancipation' Smith's Oscars comeback?
WILL SMITH'S HOPE FOR THE FILM Will shared this on Good Day DC on Sunday 27 November when he was asked about how fans will respond to the film.
My deepest concern is my team, you know? [Director] Antoine [Fuqua] has done what I think is the greatest work of his entire career The people on this team have done some of the best work of their entire careers, and my deepest hope is that my actions don't penalise my team. At this point, that's what I'm working for. That's what I'm hoping for, US Weekly said.
--
ALSO READ: #SlapGate: Jada Pinkett Smith thinks Will overreacted' at Oscars
I'm hoping that the material - the power of the film, the timeliness of the story - I'm hoping that the good that can be done would, you know, open people's hearts at a minimum to see and recognize and support the incredible artists in and around this film, the publication reports.
ALSO READ: First time I've ever seen him go off': Will Smith's mom on his Oscars slap
Smith slaps this year's Oscars host, comedian Chris Rock. Images: Robyn Beck/ AFP and Apple TV THE FILM IS BIGGER THAN THE SLAP' DIRECTOR SAYS The Director of the film Antoine Fuqua also said in the same interview that the film to him is bigger than the slap.
--
Four hundred years of slavery is bigger than one moment. My hope is that people will see it that way and watch the movie and be swept away with the great performance by Will and all the real hard work that the whole crew did, he said.
ALSO READ: From Hollywood to Bollywood: Is Will Smith on a spiritual journey in India?
Antoine also told Vanity Fair early this month that he hopes Will and Chris can sit down and make amends.
..no excuses for anyone or anything, but I can say that he's a good man and I hope that people can forgive him and that we can move forward. I hope Chris and Will find a way to sit together publicly, privately, whatever, and make amends. I think it would be an incredible statement, he said.
Emancipation - written by William N Collage - stars Smith as a real-life runaway slave who joins the Union Army to fight his oppressors during the American Civil War.
ALSO READ: He called for 10 days': Will Smith and Floyd are homies' now
WIN R6 000 for Christmas - take The South African Reader Survey!
Africa Stories
13/10/2026
The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Mr Gayton McKenzie, invites suitably qu...
13/10/2026
The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Mr Gayton McKenzie, invites members of ...
07/10/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce the extensi...
02/10/2026
01 October 2026 | Johannesburg, South Africa - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an entity of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), is ...
01/10/2026
Johannesburg, South Africa, 30 September 2026 - The National Film and Video Foun...
23/09/2026
1. ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites applications from experienced producers who own or manage a South African product...
23/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce the opening...
17/09/2026
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), in partnership with the Nation...
16/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible South African pro...
09/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible Tier 1 and 2 South African production companies to submit proposals to serve as the Facilitating ...
05/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
18/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
15/08/2026
14 August 2026 | Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), a...
14/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Ar...
08/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
28/07/2026
27 July 2026, Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an a...
20/07/2026
The NFVF, an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, has released t...
09/07/2026
08 July 2026, Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an a...
06/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
10/06/2026
Production and Development Funding supports the creation of compelling, commercially viable, artistic and culturally relevant South African screen content. Deve...
09/06/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is a statutory body mandated to spearhead the equitable growth and development of the South African film and video...
19/05/2026
Press Release
18 May 2026, Johannesburg South Africa has been selected as the...
24/04/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/04/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
26/03/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), has been tasked with administering the Sixth Presi...
24/03/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible Tier 1 and 2 South African production companies to submit proposals to serve as the Facilitating ...
15/03/2026
Johannesburg, 14 March 2026 - On 13 and 14 March 2026, the 19th Annual South Afr...
12/03/2026
Johannesburg, 11 March 2026 - The 19th Annual South African Film and Television ...
03/03/2026
Click here for isiXhosa version.
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites aspiring and emerging filmmakers from Matatiele and surrounding areas to...
17/02/2026
Johannesburg, 17 February 2026 - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), ...
09/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts, and Culture and custodian of the SAFTAs, is calling on all South Afri...
09/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
09/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the call for training provider submissions is open. This funding aims to award grants ...
06/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
04/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites final-year animation students to participate in an exclusive creative showcase at the Annecy International...
02/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in partnership with the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS), is calling for applications from experienced Sou...
29/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in collaboration with a distribut...
28/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in partnership with the Oudtshoorn Municipality, invites aspiring and emerging filmmakers to apply for the Sediba...
20/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
07/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in collaboration with a distributor, is commissioning new micro-budget fiction feature films and invites eligible...
31/10/2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
30 October 2025
It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing of Segomotso Keorapetse, an award- winning South African television d...
29/10/2025
It's not the wonders of the world that make a place; it's the people. As...
07/10/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
02/10/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce the opening...
Will Smith hopes the slap' will not punish his Emancipation' teamWill Smith hopes that with the upcoming release of his film Emancipation', people will not punish his team for the Oscar slap. 
