If Will Smith thought the end of the week would bring the end of news about the Oscars slap, then boy was he wrong. Today (March 31) the FCC announced that they have received dozens of complaints in response to the shocking smack seen on Sunday night’s live show.
The Federal Communications Commission is the government agency that regulates interstate and international communications through cable, radio, television, satellite and wire and they’re well aware of Smith’s interaction with Chris Rock after Rock made a joke at Jada Pinkett Smith’s expense.
In the complaints received, viewers stated that the word “fucking” was not censored from the broadcast, with a California resident saying they were unhappy about “[foul] language that was mouthed from his mouth,” in reference to Smith. Of course, in addition to the swearing, viewers were not thrilled to witness a physical assault take place on a TV show that can usually be watched together as a family.
On Wednesday evening, The Academy put out a release claiming that they asked Smith to leave the ceremony after the altercation took place, but that he declined to do so.
“Things unfolded in a way we could not have anticipated. While we would like to clarify that Mr. Smith was asked to leave the ceremony and refused, we also recognize we could have handled the situation differently,” The Academy said to The Associated Press.
Conflicting reports soon began to circulate, as Page Six reported that a source informed TMZ that Oscars show producer Will Packer told Smith “he could stay.”
With over 60 FCC complaints already on record, a formal investigation currently underway by The Academy and more and more stars, such as Jim Carrey, Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer continuing to speak out against Smith’s actions, it doesn’t appear that this problem will be going away any time soon.