Sony Chairman Tom Rothman has reacted to viral reports that ‘Bad Boys 4’ has been halted following Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars to please his wife Jada Pinkett Smith. According to Tom, “‘Bad Boys 4’ is still in development, and reports of it being stalled were ‘inaccurate’.
Yahoo Entertainment has more;
In an interview with Deadline, Rothman confirmed that Bad Boys 4 was still in development, despite reports saying the film was stalled in the wake of Will Smith’s Oscars’ slap.
“No. That was inaccurate,” Rothman said. “That movie’s been in development and still is. There weren’t any brakes to pump because the car wasn’t moving.”
For those unfamiliar, during the 94th Oscars, Smith got onstage and slapped comedian Chris Rock in the face after the latter made a joke about wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s bald look, which the actress has attributed to her battle with alopecia, which causes hair loss. Smith later went on to win the Oscar for Best Actor for his role as Richard Williams in King Richardand issued an apology to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
In the ensuing aftermath, Smith was banned from attending the Oscars for the next 10 years and a number of his film projects were either put on hold or pushed back.
“That was a very unfortunate thing that happened, and I don’t think it’s really my place to comment, except to say that I’ve known Will Smith for many years, and I know him to be a good person,” Rothman said of Smith’s Oscar’s outburst. “ That was an example of a very good person having a very bad moment, in front of the world. I believe his apology and regret is genuine, and I believe in forgiveness and redemption.”
I think we won’t know the full effect of Will Smith’s slap until he has a new blockbuster movie coming out. Will it hurt the box office? Will he do a press tour? We shall see.
Flip to the next page for more…
