Jerry Seinfeld revealed that he approached Chris Rock to parody the infamous moment when Will Smith slapped him at the 2022 Oscars during the filming of his directorial debut, “Unfrosted.”
During the Oscars ceremony in March 2022, Smith slapped Rock onstage in response to a joke the comedian made about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Following the incident, Smith apologized to Rock, resigned from the Academy, and received a 10-year ban from attending Academy events.
Speaking on the Fly On The Wall podcast, Seinfeld discussed an original scene he wanted to include in “Unfrosted” that would reference the slap incident. In the film, which revolves around the creation of the Pop Tart, Seinfeld stars alongside Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Hugh Grant, Amy Schumer, Max Greenfield, Christian Slater, and Bill Burr.
Seinfeld explained his idea: “The other thing I wanted to do that I almost did was Chris Rock was going to be the emcee of the Bowl & Spoon Awards, a fictional awards show that honored the best in breakfast cereals.”
He continued, “And we shot that right after the Will Smith slap. I was going to have somebody come up on the stage and have Chris punch ’em out as they got there.”
However, Rock declined the offer, as he was still shaken by the incident. Seinfeld admitted uncertainty about whether the scene would have been effective but considered it an interesting concept.
Since the Oscars slap, Rock has incorporated jokes about the incident into his stand-up routines, including performances with Dave Chappelle.
Regarding “Unfrosted,” the film has received negative reviews from critics and currently holds a 40 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have described it as a “distressingly laugh-free affair” and “forgettable.”
