Chris Rock seems to be benefitting more from the Oscars slap than anyone else and in some pleasant news to Chris, he could host the 2023 Oscars which Will Smith wouldn’t attend since he’s been banned for ten years for being violent at the 2022 Oscars. The Academy probably wants to rub it in Will Smith’s face.
According to ABC President Craig Erwich, he is open to the Chris Rock fronting the show via the Daily Mail;
ABC president Craig Erwich told Deadline that he was open to bring Rock in as the emcee. He promised that the next year’s show, slated for March 12, 2023, will be ‘even better’ than the last one.
Will Smith has been banned from attending the ceremony for 10 years after he assaulted Rock at the March award show for making a bald joke at the expense of Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith.
Smith, who resigned from the Academy, went on to win the Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena Williams.
Some lauded Smith’s defense of his wife, while others insisted he should be stripped of his award. He was not. The network president said that regretted the violence of the evening this year, but he said that otherwise it was a successful show.
‘My assessment of the Oscars was that it was really a successful year for the show. Obviously there was a lot of controversy, which overshadowed a lot of the positive things about the show, but I was really happy with the program,’ he told the trade publication.
‘Even before that very unfortunate moment, the show started off up year over year, and we came back in a big way.’ Erwich glossed over the fact that the controversy stirred up by the slap was one of the main talking points of the show.
‘It was the biggest bounce back of any award show this season,’ he told Deadline. ‘If you look at what they were trying to do, which is really bring entertainment back to the program, they had three amazing hosts, clips, and incredible musical performances, I thought it was a great way for the show to reclaim its place on the mantle.
This seems like a no-brainer and will make the ratings go through the roof.
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