30 memes that shook the internet as Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars

By Alex Harris

Updated May 31, 2023 at 01:28 PM

Reading time: 3 minutes

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Image by Rob Latour/Shutterstock

Every time the Oscars roll around, there seems to be endless scandal after endless scandal but let’s be honest—this year definitely takes the cake. Following an incredibly distasteful joke made by comedian and host Chris Rock at the expense of Jada Pinkett-Smith, Oscar nominee Will Smith proceeded to storm the stage and slap the presenter live on air. He then went on to yell, “Keep my wife’s name out your fucking mouth” from his seat. The so-called ‘joke’ was, in fact, a cheap shot at Pinkett-Smith’s bald head—a result of her medical condition, alopecia.

The moment, of course, took the internet by storm—with many celebrating Smith’s defence of his wife. Here are some of the best memes and reactions to Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 94th Oscars:

We know for a fact this moment is going to end up on one of those random videos you watch on YouTube at 3 am and it’ll probably be titled ‘12 most shocking award show moments’—safe to say this year might definitely take the top spot.

Got to love a No Way Home meme with our favourite Spider-Man.

 

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A post shared by SGAG (@sgagsg)

Forget Marvel, we love any reference we can get when it comes to Encanto’s the Madrigal family.

Nothing beats this José Mourinho meme classic.

Uhh, does Drake even write his own music anymore?

Chris Rock was too stunned to speak.

This is officially an Andrew Garfield stan page as this sneaky moment of him on his phone has the internet obsessed. In fact, this snap of him alone (post-slapdown) became the meme of the night. Was the social media recluse secretly stalking the feeds for some comedy commentary on the drama? We’re hedging our bets that he’s as messy as we are.

The switch-up between his laughter and slap is exactly why Will Smith deserved his Oscar.

Nothing hits the spot like an empath TikTok joke. If you know you know… If you don’t, well, you’re clearly not on the right side of the app.

Are you starting to get annoyed yet? Well, buckle up, you’re in for a few more.

 

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A post shared by DeMarko 🤣 (@freakymarko)

We’re not going to see Queen B for a while now, are we? This is why she doesn’t leave the house.

 

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A post shared by Meme Theme (@m3metheme)

We’re halfway there so let’s take a small break now. Among the saturation of commentary online about the slap of the century, there are many who woke up this morning without a scooby about what went down—nor did they care. To be fair, they probably are in the right, seeing as how those who are typically obsessed with celebrities are reportedly less intelligent—doesn’t bode well for us now, does it?

Looks like Euphoria Sundays are here to stay with the messiness of last night… Will ran onto that stage to slap the fuck out of Cassie—sorry, Chris.

Just living through historical moments everyday, no big deal.

Nobody wants to hear any hot takes about Will Smith’s ‘display of violence’ at the show, not when predators, abusers and accused rapists have a plethora of shiny gold trophies to go around—I mean hello? Harvey Weinstein, Roman Polanski, Woody Allen, Casey Affleck and not to mention the accusations resurfacing around Jared Leto who won an Oscar for his role in Dallas Buyers Club. There are no calls to strip them of their Oscars but then again, they have one thing in common… they’re white.

This adorable grandmother is living for Smith’s defence of his wife.

Another one for the people who don’t care, we see you and we respect you.

After last night, it looks like Rock’s going to lay low for a while… 

This. This right here is the best joke I’ve seen all day and if you’re a Wendy Williams fan then you’ll agree—her hilarious and controversial commentary on everything celebrity has been sorely missed. Williams, who has been dealing with a plethora of serious health issues, has taken a break from her hosting duties but has vowed to return despite her show’s cancellation. And if she were on air, she would have most definitely, in her classic walking-meme-way, said ‘clap if you would have slapped him’. I can almost hear it.

We can’t say no to another Marvel reference.

Samuel L. Jackson must know some shit…

 

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A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith)

We couldn’t help ourselves but include a reaction from the man himself after all the drama. Safe to say, they’re leaning into it. Now we just have to stay tuned for Red Table Talk, obviously.