hollywoodland
Will Smith: Fist Fights, Jail Cells, and the Slap Heard Round the World
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In 1989, shortly after winning his first Grammy Award, at just 20 years old, Will Smith was arrested and charged with assault after a brawl at a popular Philadelphia radio station left one man nearly blind. It nearly ended his career just as things were getting started. But Will Smith overcame this challenge, and so many others, to become one of the most successful actors in Hollywood. That is, until decades later, at the 2022 Academy Awards ceremony, when trouble once again bubbled to the surface.
Sources
Will, by Will Smith with Mark Manson
Will Smith's 1989 assault that almost left man blind resurfaces after he slapped Chris Rock (MEAWW)
Will Smith 1989 mugshot for connection to attack which almost left man blind (Daily Mail)
The Number Ones: Will Smith’s “Wild Wild West” (Feat. Dru Hill & Kool Moe Dee) (Stereogum)
Will Smith Had To Shatter His Image To Get That Oscar (HuffPost Entertainment)
The Will Smith & Chris Rock Slap Situation Is Not About You (Teen Vogue)
Will Smith, Chris Rock And What Accountability Looks Like (xoNecole)
Credits
Hosted by Jake Brennan.
Written by Jaelani Turner-Williams.
Copy edited by James Sullivan.
Scored and mixed by Matt Tahaney.
Additional music and score elements by Ryan Spraker.
*illustrations by Avi Spivak @avispivak