Dave Chappelle has returned with a new Netflix stand-up comedy special, The Dreamer, and he’s weighing in on the infamous Will Smith–Chris Rock Oscars slap incident via TV Insider.
In the special, which was filmed in Chappelle’s hometown of Washington, DC, at the Lincoln Theatre, the comedian touches on the Oscars slap, describing it as “one of the craziest things I have ever seen.”
He noted that, at first, he thought it was “fake,” and he “waited 30, 40 minutes” before calling Rock to find out what really happened.
“I called him on FaceTime, and he picked up,” Chappelle shared. “Soon as he picked up, he said, ‘Yous the only n***a I’d answer the phone for.’ Apparently, Obama and Oprah, everybody called this n***a to see if everything’s all right.”
“And I thought it was fake. I didn’t know,” he continued. “So I asked. I go, ‘Well, you know.’ He said, ‘What?’ I said, ‘Did it hurt?’ He said, ‘Yes, n***a, it hurt.’ And then I knew it was real. And then, and only then, was I offended.”
Chappelle explained that the part that offended him was how “Will just sat down and enjoyed the rest of his evening. It was crazy. What the f**k is this?”
He also addressed Rock’s special, Selective Outrage, in which the Everybody Hates Chris creator told the crowd, “I refuse to be a victim.”
“Watch the tape!” Chapelle joked before going on to discuss his own on-stage attack at the Hollywood Bowl that same year. The comedian was tackled by an audience member who ran up onto the stage during his performance.
“For a homeless guy, this n***a had incredible seats,” Chappelle quipped before talking about how his security team and celebrity friends rushed the stage to help.
