For the past three decades, Will Smith has worked as a professional movie star.
It’s a position that requires a lot of energy and is constantly scrutinized, yet Smith never seemed to crumble under the pressure. He’d mug for the cameras on red carpets and seemed to feed off the energy of screaming fans. He’d be down for anything in interviews and late-night appearances, divulging a few intimate facts (OK, maybe a touch too intimate at times) while yet maintaining enough of a barrier of seclusion to maintain his A-list status. Smith would work the room in professional situations, such as lunches and dinners with Oscar voters, making eye contact, recalling names, and gripping shoulders and arms in displays of earnestness that would put seasoned politicians to shame. He was the epitome of stardom.
Smith’s violent outburst at the Oscars on Sunday came as a shock to his adoring fans as well as the scores of studio executives, directors, producers, and handlers who had surrounded him for years. Smith could be demanding, expecting the luxuries, material comforts, and deference that came with being a top-tier leading man, but he was also gracious and generous, with the intuitive ability of a performer to always sense when the public’s gaze had turned on him.
That’s why his decision to charge the stage and assault comic Chris Rock in the middle of Hollywood’s greatest night was both unexpected and shocking. On Monday, Smith apologized to Rock, the Academy, and the public after nearly a full day had passed. His actions, however, risk tarnishing his carefully nurtured reputation and jeopardizing his job. It will undoubtedly detract from what should have been one of his biggest career achievements, a best actor win for his role in “King Richard.”
Insiders chastised Smith for his lengthy, self-justifying acceptance speech, in which he failed to apologize directly to Rock, and for his decision to attend high-profile events such as the Vanity Fair party to celebrate.
“It was a master class in celebrity entitlement,” a public relations consultant who does not work with Smith said.
It’s difficult to say how much Smith stands to lose as a result of the situation. The actor doesn’t do many endorsement deals, but through his YouTube Originals docuseries “Best Shape of My Life,” he does serve as a FitBit ambassador.
He’s been linked to a number of high-profile projects as an actor. He’ll star in “Emancipation,” a historical thriller about a runaway slave that Apple Original Films sold for $120 million. The film is slated to screen at a number of film festivals this fall. Smith is reportedly slated to star in “Bright” and “Bad Boys” sequels, though neither picture has a shooting screenplay. He’s also committed to “Fast & Loose,” a thriller directed by David Leitch (“Atomic Blonde”). Smith had been attached to Netflix’s “The Council,” a biopic of drug lord Nicky Barnes, but he has dropped out for reasons unrelated to the Oscars event.
Though the brawl will almost surely become a talking point as Smith promotes future projects, industry experts believe the event will not completely sink Smith’s career if he manages the fallout. He’s already picky about what he does in front of the camera, and he’s recently become more interested in producing films and shows through his multimedia firm Westbrook. Insiders speculate that now that he has won an Academy Award, he may be less interested in major roles.
“I don’t envision a future where filmmakers don’t want to work with Will Smith,” one top film producer said, speaking on the condition of anonymity, “but he may have alienated some of his fanbase.”
Despite the fact that most studio executives and insiders believe Smith will continue to be in demand, his days as a reliable box office attraction were dwindling even before the slap-gate scandal. Smith, who is 53 years old, is past his action hero heyday, and some of his recent films have flopped at the box office, including “Focus,” “Collateral Beauty,” and “Gemini Man.” He has, however, had blockbuster hits like “Aladdin,” “Suicide Squad,” and “Bad Boys For Life,” many of which were pre-existing franchises or well-known intellectual property. “Bright,” a sci-fi adventure, was a huge streaming hit for Netflix, but it’s fair to say that having Smith’s name above the title no longer guarantees ticket sales like it did in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
“This is the artist formally known as Mr. Fourth of July in terms of box office success. “He’s used to being a show-stopper at the box office,” said Jeff Bock, an Exhibitor Relations media analyst. (Since 1996’s “Independence Day,” several of Smith’s biggest blockbusters have been released around July 4th weekend, including 1997’s “Men In Black,” 2002’s “Men In Black II,” and 2008’s “Hancock.”) “His [box office] fall was already happening,” Bock observes.
Smith, on the other hand, is more than a movie star. Smith produces blockbuster shows including “Cobra Kai” and “Bel-Air” through Westbrook, the media company he founded with his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. He received a $60 million investment from Candle, a media business founded by former Disney executives Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer, in the fall of last year, valuing the company at slightly under $600 million. That means Smith, if his image is seriously tarnished, can be the project’s less visible face.
As a way of restoring his public image, some studio executives believe Smith will give a sit-down interview with someone like to Oprah Winfrey. Despite the fact that the Smith family has its own in-house discussion show on Facebook Watch, “Red Table Talk,” sources believe that the actor must step outside of his comfort zone or risk being accused of self-promotion. Smith also has a history of historical trauma that would be interesting to discuss in such an interview. Smith describes how his father, Willard Carroll Smith Sr., physically abused his mother in his 2021 book “Will.” The actress opens out about the sorrow she felt as a youngster when her parents failed to intercede on her behalf. Smith should expect his every word and behavior to be examined and analyzed when he resurfaces. The margin of error will be razor-thin.
“Will will have to not just be on his best behavior, but he’ll have to be a saint,” Bock says. That doesn’t rule out the possibility of salvation. “Nothing pleases Hollywood more than a good redemption story. That could be the most difficult role he’s ever had.”
While Hollywood loves a comeback, disaster PR specialist Howard Bragman points out that the impact is more complicated because it wasn’t self-directed. Other celebrity scandals, such as Tom Cruise’s iconic couch-jumping or Robert Downey Jr.’s struggles with substance misuse, did not have the same level of impact.
“People have compared it to Tom Cruise,” Bragman remarked, “but it was Tom Cruise hurting Tom Cruise.” “This caused harm to others.”
Smith will now have to demonstrate that he understands how to make amends.
