Chris Freind: Open letter to Will Smith: Your worst performance ever – The Delaware County Daily Times

Chris Pizzello/ The Associated Press

Dear Will Smith:

They say timing is everything. Sadly, your timing couldnt have been worse.

After a stellar career and a reputation as one of Hollywoods good guys, you destroyed much of that legacy by your behavior at the Oscars. You brought shame upon yourself, embarrassed many in your hometown of Philly, disgraced the Academy Awards, and stole the thunder from every other winner. Worst of all, your actions set a terrible example for the most important among us our impressionable children. Most wont remember apologies, or understand any personal issues you may have been enduring. Instead, they may think that physically assaulting and verbally abusing anyone who disrespects them is justified, since their hero did just that in front of the entire world.

Tinseltown loves to say theres no such thing as bad publicity. But in your case, that may not be true. Since you already have fame and fortune, the effect of additional good publicity is marginal. So it stands to reason that bad PR might be just that bad. Bad for your soul. Bad for your reputation. And bad for your legacy, which, for most successful people, is the thing they most covet. Sure, youll never have to look for work in Hollywood, since you remain a bankable name. But when it comes down to it, losing your cool and hitting someone solely because of a joke is what people will most remember about Will Smith.

To combat that, the best thing you could do is embark on a genuine mea culpa tour, where you speak about accountability and civility and why violence is never the answer.

Otherwise, youll be most remembered not as a Prince or King, but as a Bad Boy.

For those living under a rock (no pun intended), comedian Chris Rock hosted the Academy Awards on Sunday, where he made a joke about Will Smiths wife Jada Pinkett Smith due to her shaved head. At first, it appeared that Will laughed right along with many others. But after that and possibly after seeing his wifes disdain Smith leapt onto the stage, approached Rock, and slapped him in the face. Upon returning to his seat, he unleashed expletives at the host.

For his part, Rock played it as best he could after being assaulted on live international television. He composed himself, ad-libbed a quick joke, and carried on hosting. Bolstering his reputation as a class act, Rock refused to press charges even though Smith didnt apologize to him after winning an Oscar minutes later, or after the ceremony concluded, instead choosing to party the night away. Only the next day did Smith apologize to the comedian, but frankly, it seems too little, too late.

Some thoughts on the sordid affair:

First and foremost, Chris Rock is a comedian. By definition, comics make jokes. Sometimes they are funny, and sometimes they bomb, but by the nature of what they do, comics are not meant to be viewed seriously nor their jokes taken personally.

To be even having a discussion over a harmless Oscars joke as to whether or not it was appropriate is so mindboggling that, if someone scripted it, hed be laughed out of the room, even by Hollywoods low standards.

Whats the solution? Should Chris Rock have requested the medical records of every person he might have roasted that night, and planned his jokes accordingly? Or, in the name of political correctness and censorship and to protect the offended class should he have been given a list of topics and people who were off the table? If so, be prepared for future hosts telling nothing but second-grade knock-knock jokes, because thats all thatll pass such ridiculous litmus tests.

2) Rock declined to press charges, but the L.A. District Attorneys office could. At the least, it should consider doing so. This wasnt chivalrous, nor a romantic gesture, or a private fight mano-a-mano out of public view, but a live physical assault in front of literally the entire planet. People get arrested every day for less, so the D.A. should be careful not to be seen as giving a celebrity a free pass.

Arrest or not, the best outcome would be for Will Smith to actively engage in community service, hitting the speaking circuit to discuss the consequences of actions, anger management, forgiveness and rehabilitation. It would be a win-win: Smith would salvage his reputation, and his star power could have a huge impact on Americas youth by helping them avoid the path of bad choices.

3) Many are calling for the Academy to strip Smith of his Oscar. It should not, since winning the award has nothing to do with his behavior at the ceremony. In other words, since he had already earned the prize, the recognition of that achievement should not be tied to events that occurred off-screen. Its akin to stripping athletes of awards because of activities off the field. Ultimately, such punitive actions are meaningless since everyone knows those people earned their awards through hard work and merit.

4) Where are we going when Americas hyper-sensitivity no longer allows us to laugh at ourselves? And worse, when we willfully permit the thought police to exercise control over every aspect of our lives?

This is precisely why some comedians such as Rock, Jerry Seinfeld and Larry the Cable Guy have refused to perform on college campuses, and why some commencement speakers have withdrawn from graduation ceremonies. Spoiled brats, insulated-from-reality, protest everything and everyone so frequently that its gotten to the point where normal people are walking away, refusing to subject themselves to such treatment.

Comedy acts are not news programs, and should not be treated as such. Instead, since the goal is simply to make people laugh, nothing said should be taken with a straight face. What part of that dont people understand?

You can tell a lot about a society by its sense of humor. The strong ones have the ability to laugh, poke fun, and engage in self-deprecating humor, made possible by an innate confidence and the ability not to take itself too seriously.

Conversely, societies that live in fear, get constantly offended and attempt to sanitize everything with the goal of complete homogenization put themselves on the path to self-destruction. Political correctness rules the day, common sense goes out the window, and a bitter resentment grows as people feel they can only express themselves behind closed doors, fearful of being labeled insensitive and bigoted.

This is no laughing matter. Its time to grow a spine and push back against this rising tide of insanity. No more backing down for innocent jokes, and no more apologies to people whose entire existence is predicated upon being offended.

Hey Chris Rock keep the laughs coming. And for anyone who disagrees, the jokes on them.

Chris Freind is an independent columnist and commentator whose column appears every Wednesday. He can be reached at CF@FFZMedia.com Follow him on Twitter @chrisfreind.

Read more:

Chris Freind: Open letter to Will Smith: Your worst performance ever - The Delaware County Daily Times