ContestsEvents

LISTEN LIVE

James Corden Says Will Smith Can’t Take A Joke, Praises Chris Rock

While hosting The Late Late Show with James Corden Monday night (March 28), James Corden shouted out Chris Rock for keeping his cool when Will Smith slapped him across the…

james corden, will smith

James Corden attends The Range Rover Leadership Summit at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on November 15, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. Will Smith accepts the Actor in a Leading Role award for ‘King Richard’ onstage during the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 27, 2022 in Hollywood, California.

Joe Scarnici/Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

While hosting The Late Late Show with James Corden Monday night (March 28), James Corden shouted out Chris Rock for keeping his cool when Will Smith slapped him across the face onstage at the Oscars.

After the comedian made a joke about Will's wife Jada Pinkett Smith's alopecia condition, Will, 53 told Chris, 57, "Keep my wife's name out your f---ing mouth!" Smith has since apologized to Chris Rock on his Instagram account last night.

Joking about what went down at the Academy Awards, Corden, 43, began, "I mean, the whole incident threw me off in a huge way, also completely ruined my chances in the Oscar pool. I had Dame Judi Dench smacking Woody Harrelson."

On a serious note, the host continued, "Seriously though, I applaud Chris Rock for recovering, keeping the show moving. It was an incredibly dignified response. I'll say this: Will Smith can't take a joke, Chris Rock can take a punch. A steel jaw. Unbelievable!"

In a scripted segment on the late-night show, Corden met with his producers to map out what Monday's episode would look like. During the spot, the host disagreed with his team on how they'd recap the Oscars and Smith smacking Rock. "James, we have to at least acknowledge [the incident]," one producer began, before Corden interjected by bursting into song.

"We don't talk about Jada, no, no, no," he sang, parodying the tune "We Don't Talk About Bruno" from Lin-Manuel Miranda's Encanto (which won for Best Animated Film) with a crew of dancers behind him.

Watch below:

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.