Oscars made ‘right decision’ on not ‘taking the Black man out’ after Smith assault: Whoopi Goldberg
'The reason they didn’t go and take him out is because that would have been another 15, 20-minute explanation of why we’re taking the Black man out'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Whoopi Goldberg claimed on Tuesday that Will Smith wasn't removed from the Oscar's ceremony following his on-stage assault of Chris Rock to avoid a long 'explanation of why we’re taking the Black man out.'
During the opening segment of ABC's "The View", the liberal co-host praised what she said was Oscars producer Will Packer's decision not to immediately remove Smith because it would have required an explanation as to why they were removing a Black man from the room right before he found out whether he won an award.
Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith, Will Smith, Jaden Smith and Trey Smith attend the 2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party (Rich Fury/VF22/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The thing I also need to tell people is the reason no one got up to comfort Chris is because they weren’t going to let anybody else on the stage … There were people there for Chris," Goldberg said.
"The reason people got up and went over to [Smith] is because I think a lot of people thought, ‘Oh my God, is he having a break? Do we need to get him out? What do we need to do?’ The reason they didn’t go and take him out is because that would have been another 15, 20-minute explanation of why we’re taking the Black man out five seconds before they’re about to decide whether he’s won an Oscar or not," she added.
Goldberg said that Packer made "the right decision" to let the show play out so that the situation could be dealt with later.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Comedian Chris Rock on the set of Saturday Night Live (Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
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Smith went on to win the Oscar for lead actor for his role as Richard Williams in the movie "King Richard."
Co-host Joy Behar suggested Smith might need therapy because of a traumatic childhood memory of abuse between his parents he previously recounted, while guest co-host Tara Setmayer argued that just because the reason behind the assault could be explained, didn't mean it should be excused.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Will Smith yells at Chris Rock from his seat at the Oscar's after physically assaulting him on stage on Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Screenshot/ABC) (Screenshot/ABC)
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Co-host Sunny Hostin praised Rock, saying that he was the victim and that "he took the high road" despite Smith's actions.
"He was the victim here, but let’s also know that everything that needed to happen that evening happened. Chris took care of business and he is the adult who said, ‘You know what, I get it. I’m going to let this do what it needs to do.’ We all saw it. We know what happened," Goldberg responded, ending the segment.