Denzel Washington is breaking his silence over what happened at the Oscars, where he had a front-row seat to the Will Smith slapping incident.
Washington told famed religious leader T.D. Jakes that he and Tyler Perry prayed with Smith.
“For whatever reason, the devil got a hold of him. Who are we to condemn? I don’t know all the ins and outs of the situation,” Washington said.
The backlash for Smith shows no sign of letting up.
In his resignation letter to the Academy, he writes, “I am heartbroken. The list of those I have hurt is long.”
Sony is reportedly putting the brakes on “Bad Boys 4,” and Netflix has shelved “Fast and Loose,” a movie they were producing with Smith. It’s been moved to the back burner, according to Variety.
“Will Smith is absolutely toxic. You cannot mention his name without mentioning the slap. So right now, nobody is going to be rushing to greenlight a Will Smith project,” Variety chief correspondent Elizabeth Weigmester said.
The slap seen ‘round the world got the full “SNL” treatment. Smith was mocked throughout the show, including on “Weekend Update” and in another sketch featuring Chris Redd.