Will Smith Was Asked To Leave The Ceremony After Chris Rock Slap!

The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences says they did ask Will Smith to leave the Oscars on Sunday after he slapped Chris Rock, but the actor refused.

The Academy released a statement Wednesday that reads,  “While we would like to clarify that Mr. Smith was asked to leave the ceremony and refused, we also recognize we could have handled the situation differently.”

The Academy also apologized to the comedian in a statement, “Mr. Rock, we apologize to you for what you experienced on our stage and thank you for your resilience at that moment. We also apologize to our nominees, guests and viewers for what transpired during what should have been a celebratory event.”

Earlier in the week, The Academy condemned Smith’s actions and launched a formal review into the incident.

On Monday, Will Smith did apologize for slapping Chris Rock Live on TV at the Oscars after Rock made a joke towards his wide, Jada Pinkett Smith.

Related: Will Smith Apologizes To Chris Rock For Slap On The Face...

Chris Rock briefly addressed the Will Smith slap last night while in Boston.

On Wednesday, Rock took the stage in front of a sold-out show to several standing ovations before he told one joke.  As the applause carried on for minutes — with fans yelling “I love you, Chris!” — the comedian appeared to be getting emotional,  “How was your weekend?” Rock joked before getting into his set.

“I’m still processing what happened, so at some point, I’ll talk about that shit,” Rock told the crowd. “It’ll be serious. It’ll be funny, but right now I’m going to tell some jokes.”

Rock didn’t mention the Sunday night’s ordeal and focused on his pre-written 75 minute set of new jokes.

This was not the first time Rock had made a joke at Pinkett Smith's expense. When he hosted the 2016 Oscars, some people boycotted the ceremony over the #OscarsSoWhite group of nominees, including the Smiths. Said Rock then: “Jada boycotting the Oscars is like me boycotting Rihanna’s panties. I wasn’t invited.”