Former President Donald Trump’s arrest in New York this week attracted commentary from across the world of entertainment, with many reacting to the 34 felony charges the former president now faces.
Trump recently stated that he expected to be arrested in connection with the investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney soon. He went on to call for protests as New York law enforcement prepares for a possible indictment. A photo of Donald Trump’s plane taking off to fly to New York for his arrest was also leaked.
The controversy sparked around the hush money payment that Cohen admitted that he made to Stormy Daniels during the fall of Trump’s 2016 White House bid to keep her from coming forward about an alleged affair she had with the then-candidate. Trump has denied the affair. Previously, TMZ reported that Daniels was experiencing the impact of Trump’s potential impending arrest and reportedly strengthening her security after receiving multiple threats.
Samuel L. Jackson, Yvette Nicole Brown, George Takei, and Jimmy Kimmel were some of the celebrities who mocked Trump’s arraignment. According to social media, one major Hollywood star allegedly went further, suggesting that Donald Trump’s supporters should be brought down a peg as well.
A tweet by user @ThePatriotOasis, posted on April 5, 2023, claimed that “Will Smith wants to ‘Cleanse’ America of Trump supporters.”
The tweet included a clip of Will Smith, in which the actor is heard saying: “And as painful as it is to hear Donald Trump talk and as embarrassing as it is as an American to hear him talk, I think it’s good. We get to hear it, we get to know who people are and now we get to cleanse it out of our country.”
Trump has certainly enjoyed support from his loyalists following his arrest on Monday, with some polls showing he still retains a lead over potential presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, ahead of the GOP primaries.
While Trump retains a devoted base, it’s fair to say his continued presence in politics has not been welcomed by many, as the clip shared on social media appeared to suggest. However, the tweet that accompanied the clip did not include the context necessary to understand Will Smith’s comments in full.
