Will Smith slaps Chris Rock to defend Jada Pinkett-Smith at Oscars

In the words of Chris Rock "uh oh".

The Oscars 2022 took a turn for the worse, when Will Smith smacked Chris Rock after he joked about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith - but this was no prank, claim sources.

During the 94th Academy Awards ceremony, which was held at The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday 27 March, comedian Chris appeared to poke fun at Jada, 50, shaved head.

But the comment did not go down well with the couple, as Jada first opened up about her battle with alopecia, which causes hair loss, in 2018.

While presenting the Best Documentary award, Chris said: "Jada, can't wait for GI Jane 2."

In GI Jane Demi Moore - who portrays Jordan O'Neill - sports a shaved head for the role.

The camera panned to the audience, and saw Jada shaking her head and rolling her eyes, while Will, 53, was chuckling. But moments before Will Smith, 53, made his way on stage.

Chris seemed confused, and slightly alarmed, in footage of Will approaching him as he said: "I'm out here... uh oh", before Will slaps him round the face.

All fired up, the King Richard actor - who picked up the Best Actor award for his role in the production - fumed: "Keep my wife's name out of your f***ing mouth."

Chris tried to not let the moment throw him off as he continued to laugh, and then said: "Wow, Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me."

After the shocking ordeal, fellow A-listers reached out to Will and Jada, including Denzel Washington, Bradley Cooper, Queen Latifah, and P Diddy.

P Diddy - whose real name is Sean Combs - tried to mediate between the pair once the livestream of the annual awards bash resumed. He said: "Will and Chris, we’re going to solve this – but right now we’re moving on with love."

While some viewers thought the ordeal was a prank, Vanity Fair executive editor, Ramin Setoodeh, who was live tweeting from the red carpet, insisted it was not part of rehearsals.

The tweet read: " It was not supposed to happen. It was real."

Later in the evening Will came out to apologise, as he picked up the Best Actor title for his role in King Richard.

He said: "I want to apologise to the Academy, I want to apologise to all my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment.'

'Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family. In this time in my life, in this moment I am overwhelmed by what God is calling on me to do."