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False Report Claims Chris Rock Wins Lawsuit Against Will Smith
It's been over two years since comedian Chris Rock was slapped by actor Will Smith on stage at the Academy Awards. Recently, a claim virally circulated on social media claimed Rock won a lawsuit and received $40 million in damages from Smith. This claim has circulated widely, garnering numerous reactions and comments. However, reviewing reliable reports proves this claim was false.
SOCIAL MEDIA CLAIM
Social media is buzzing with claims that comedian Chris Rock won a lawsuit against actor Will Smith for the infamous 2022 Academy Awards slap. Reports also assert Rock received up to $40 million in compensation—touted as the most expensive slap ever.
Below is the snapshot of the viral claim on October 3, 2024: “Chris Rock wins lawsuit against Will Smith for that famous slap getting a whopping $40 million, it has just become the most expensive slap ever!!!”This claim was initially posted on social media two months ago, gaining significant traction before resurfacing and going viral again early this month.
Below is a snapshot of the original post from August 10, 2024, identical to the recently shared version.
The claim in Khmer was circulated three days ago and received a lot of shares, reactions, and comments from Khmer-speaking Facebook users who believed it to be true.
Below is the snapshot of the claim in Khmer posted on Facebook on October 8, 2024. The Khmer caption is equivalent to the original English post.This claim has also been widely shared on other social networks such as Twitter, Threads, and TikTok
FACT CHECK
Fact Crescendo has begun verifying the claims by cross-referencing reliable reports from international media outlets, leading us to uncover the following facts.
With cross-referencing reports, we found information published by some credible sources who said that this claim was false.
The news was verified by Snopes in mid-August, stating that American comedian Chris Rock had not filed a lawsuit against American actor Will Smith and had not received $40 million in damages from him either.
According to Snopes, no credible news reports have been published by major US and other international media outlets.
Snopes found that the Hollywood Reporter reported that comedian Chris Rock received up to $40 million from online movie studio Netflix for two special comedy shows in a contract that has been in place since 2016.
Following his contract nearly 10 years ago, Chris Rock appeared on the comedy show "Chris Rock: Selective Outrage" live on Netflix in March 2023, recalling the incident. This was reported by Entertainment Weekly on March 5, 2023.
The magazine quoted Chris Rock, saying that despite everything, he would always love Will Smith. Rock also mentioned watching Smith’s movie, Emancipation.Entertainment Weekly | Archived Link
Variety magazine, citing a statement from the Los Angeles Police Department, reported that after the incident, Chris Rock did not file a complaint against Will Smith.
Below is a snapshot from Variety magazine’s report on March 27, 2022, showing the Los Angeles Police Department statement.Variety Article | Archived Link
CONCLUSION
Fact Crescendo has confirmed that the claims are false. There is no lawsuit filed by Chris Rock against Will Smith, and no $40 million compensation has been paid.
