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Jimmy Kimmel: Chris Rock ‘Should Be Proud Of’ Staying Cool After Oscars Slap

Jimmy Kimmel is reflecting on last year’s Oscars telecast when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock across the face onstage. The late-night talk show was watching the show from home. “It’s…

jimmy kimmel, chris rock

Jimmy Kimmel attends the world premiere of Netflix’s “Your Place Or Mine” at Regency Village Theatre on February 02, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Chris Rock is seen backstage during the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 27, 2022 in Hollywood, California.

Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images/Al Seib /A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images

Jimmy Kimmel is reflecting on last year's Oscars telecast when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock across the face onstage. The late-night talk show was watching the show from home.

"It's still shocking that that happened," Kimmel, 55, tells People. "To see something like that happen outside of like The Maury Povich Show is shocking. And then for it to happen on the Oscars magnifies it by about a million times…. I think it's something that everybody regrets and that we will move past. One day it will be looked at in the same way as that guy running onstage naked is looked at: a weird moment that we all talked about and we hopefully learn from."

While Kimmel hasn't talked to Smith, he has touched base with Rock, and commends the comedian for keeping calm in the moment. "I mean, to be slapped in the face and to stay that cool is something that Chris should be proud of," he says. "Chris's grandchildren, I hope, will still be proud of that when he's dead and gone."

This year's Oscars takes place on Sunday, March 12, with Kimmel set to host the evening for a third time. The red carpet pre-show will be on at 6:30 p.m. Watch the 2023 Oscars on ABC live at 8 p.m. ET or stream it on the ABC app with your television provider, Hulu Live TV, YouTubeTV, AT&T TV and FuboTV (many of these services offer a free trial as well).

Meanwhile, Chris Rock will be performing this weekend for Netflix's first-ever live, global streaming event. Chris Rock: Selective Outrage will stream at 10 p.m. ET on Saturday (March 4). Selective Outrage is the comedian’s second special for Netflix following 2018’s Tambourine. Since April 2022, Rock has been traveling the globe as part of his Ego Death World Tour, which marked his return to live comedy after a five-year break. Rock will perform in Baltimore, at Maryland’s iconic Hippodrome Theatre, with the pre-show, The Show Before the Show, to be hosted by comedian and actor Ronny Chieng with appearances from Arsenio Hall, Leslie Jones, Deon Cole and more.

Right after the show, David Spade and Dana Carvey will tap in as co-hosts for The Show After the Show. Taking place live from Los Angeles' The Comedy Store, guests will include comedian JB Smoove and six-time NBA champion and MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Both The Show After the Show and The Show Before the Show will only be available live on March 4.

‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ Dominates Oscar Nominations

On Tuesday, Jan. 24, Riz Ahmed and Allison Williams announced the 23 nominees for the 95th Academy Awards at 8:30 a.m. ET. The presentation took place at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. The Banshees of Inisherin, Elvis, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Fabelmans, Tár and Top Gun: Maverick dominated nominations, with Everything Everywhere All at Once leading the nominations with 11.

The 95th Oscars will take place Sunday, March 12 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood with host Jimmy Kimmel. This will be Kimmel’s third time hosting, having hosted the Oscars in both 2017 and 2018. Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner of White Cherry Entertainment are serving as executive producers and showrunners, with Weiss also directing the show for the eighth consecutive year. The awards can be watched live on ABC and televised in over 200 territories worldwide.

See the full list of nominations below:

Actress In A Supporting Role

Angela Bassett -- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Hong Chau -- The Whale

Kerry Condon -- The Banshees of Inisherin

Jamie Lee Curtis -- Everything Everywhere All At Once

Stephanie Hsu -- Everything Everywhere All At Once

Costume Design

Babylon

Black Panther

Elvis

Everything Everywhere

Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris

Sound

All Quiet On The Western Front

Avatar: The Way of Water

The Batman

Elvis

Top Gun: Marverick

Original Score

All Quiet On The Western Front

Babylon

The Banshees of Inisherin

Everything Everywhere All At Once

The Fablemans

Adapted Screenplay

All Quiet On The Western Front

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Living

Top Gun: Maverick

Women Talking

Original Screenplay

The Banshees of Inisherin

Everything Everywhere All At Once

The Fablemans

Tar

Triangle of Sadness

Best Live Action Short Film

An Irish Goodbye

Ivalu

Le Pupille

Night Ride

The Red Suitcase

Best Animated Short Film

The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse

The Sailor

Ice Merchants

My Year of Dicks

An Ostrich Told Me The World Is Fake And I Think I Believe It

Actor In A Supporting Role

Brendan Gleeson -- The Banshees of Inisherin

Brian Tyree Henry -- Causeway

Judd Hirsh --The Fablemans

Barry Keoghan -- The Banshees of Inisherin

Ke Huy Quan -- Everything Everywhere All Once

Original Song

"Applause"'

"Hold My Hand"

"Lift Me Up"

"Naatu Naatu"

"This Is A Life"

Documentary Feature Film

All That Breathes

All The Beauty And The Bloodshed

Fire of Love

House Made of Splinters

Navalny

Documentary Short Film

The Elephant Whisperers

Haulout

How Do You Measure A Year?

The Martha Mitchell Effect

Stranger At The Gate

International Feature Film

All Quiet On The Western Front

Argentina, 1985

Close

EO

The Quiet Girl

Animated Feature Film

Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio

Marcel The Shell With Shoes On

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish

The Sea Beast

Turning Red

Makeup and Hairstyling

All Quiet On The Western Front

The Batman

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Elvis

The Whale

Production Design

All Quiet On The Western Front

Avatar: The Way of Water

Babylon

Elvis

The Fablemans

Film Editing

The Banshees of Inisherin

Elvis

Everything Everywhere All At Once

Tar

Top Gun: Maverick

Cinematography

All Quiet On The Western Front

Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths

Elvis

Empire of Light

Tar

Visual Effects

All Quiet On The Western Front

Avatar: The Way of Water

The Batman

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Top Gun: Maverick

Actor In A Leading Role

Austin Butler -- Elvis

Colin Farrell -- The Banshees of Inisherin

Brendan Fraser -- The Whale

Paul Mescal -- Aftersun

Bill Nighy -- Living

Actress In A Leading Role

Cate Blanchett -- Tar

Ana de Armas -- Blonde

Andrea Riseborough --- To Leslie

Michelle Williams -- The Fablemans

Michelle Yeoh -- Everything Everywhere All At Once

Directing

The Banshees of Inisherin -- Martin McDonagh

Everything Everywhere All At Once -- Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert

The Fablemans -- Steven Spielberg

Tar -- Todd Field

Triangle of Sadness -- Ruben Ostlund

Best Picture

All Quiet On The Western Front

Avatar: The Way of Water

The Banshees of Inisherin

Elvis

Everything Everywhere All At Once

The Fablemans

Tar

Top Gun: Maverick

Triangle of Sadness

Women Talking

Laila Abuelhawa is the Top 40 and Hip-Hop pop culture writer for Beasley Media Group. Being with the company for over three years, Laila's fierce and fabulous red-carpet rankings have earned her a feature on 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert!' Her favorite stories are those surrounding the latest in celebrity fashion, television and film rankings, and how the world reacts to major celebrity news. With a background in journalism, Laila's stories ensure accuracy and offer background information on stars that you wouldn't have otherwise known. She prides herself in covering stories that inform the public about what is currently happening and what is to come in the ever-changing, ever-evolving media landscape.