Rob Schneider Resurrects Will Smith Oscars Slap Drama As He Goes Off On The Actor: “He’s Really An A**hole”

Rob Schneider had some choice words to share about Will Smith in light of him infamously slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars.

The Benchwarmers star was asked on The Kyle & Jackie O Show Tuesday morning (June 11) if he had spoken to Rock following the slap. Schneider explained that he found himself “in a sticky situation” because he “was an elected official of the union at the time.”

“Will Smith is a twat,” Schneider shared, per the New York Post. “Will Smith has been hiding the fact of who he really is, and it was exposed that night that he’s really an asshole.”

Schneider lamented Smith’s slap as a “deep dark thing” to do in front of so many people, especially to Rock, who he praised as “a legendary comedian who’s literally the best comedian of our generation.”

“But I wasn’t allowed to say anything at that time because we were part of the committee that’s supposed to punish him,” he recalled.

In response to co-host Jackie O recalling her own fond experience meeting Smith, Schneider deemed Smith “a liar” and a “complete, utter fraud.”

“It was exposed in that time,” he added.

Schneider shot down Jackie O’s impression that Smith was “under all this pressure” at the time, as he proceeded to call him “douchebag.” His diatribe extended to the “politically correct” Academy, who he claimed was “so cowardly” for how they handled Smith at the ceremony.

“If I would have done that, they would’ve been hauled off to prison. They were so worried about being racist or whatever,” he continued. “The point is, violence is what it is. Whether the color of your skin or, you know, your religion doesn’t matter if you commit a crime in front of other people, you get hauled out of there.”

Smith’s slap was provoked by Rock taking a jab at his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith‘s alopecia, telling her that he “can’t wait for G.I. Jane 2.”

After co-host Kyle asked if he thought that Smith “was standing up for his Mrs.,” Schneider claimed that “it doesn’t matter” and “you can’t hit another dude,” ultimately deeming Rock’s remark “a very mild joke.”

As for where Schneider was when he heard the news, he said that he was in Mexico directing a film written by his wife, and that Rock “didn’t want to talk to anybody” in the aftermath.

“I don’t blame him. But also it took him a while to get to the point where he could react to it because it was a lot,” Schneider said. “He’s a very sensitive, great guy, and he’s literally a genius.”

Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences days after, and was banned from the awards ceremony for 10 years. In July 2022, Smith posted an apology video. Still, the slap has cemented itself in the pop culture zeitgeist as SlapGate, with Rock finally addressing the jarring moment in his March 2023 live Netflix comedy special Chris Rock: Selective Outrage.

Jerry Seinfeld even considered parodying the slap in his directorial debut Unfrosted with a cameo from Rock, himself. However, Seinfeld revealed on Dana Carvey and David Spade‘s Fly on the Wall podcast that Rock “wasn’t up to perform.”