The future for Will Smith and the Oscars will be decided on April 18, as he may face disciplinary action for the infamous slap on comedian Chris Rock this Sunday.

The Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Smith violated the Academy Standards of Conduct and has been given a formal 15-day notice that a vote that will decide his future with the award shows.

“At the next board meeting on April 18, the Academy may take any disciplinary action, which may include suspension, expulsion, or other sanctions permitted by the Bylaws and Standards of Conduct,” the board said in a statement Wednesday. “Mr. Smith’s actions at the 94th Oscars were a deeply shocking, traumatic event to witness in-person and on television.”

The statement went on to say that Smith “refused” to leave the Academy Awards show after the incident and stated they “could have handled the situation differently.”

The incident happened as Rock did a round of jokes aimed at members in the crowd, eventually getting to Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, likening her shaved head to the 1997 movie G.I. Jane, which featured actress Demi Moore in a shaved head.

In what originally looked like part of the show to many, Smith walked up on stage toward Rock, slapped him in the face and returned to his seat. The audio cut off in the U.S., but shared clips from the unedited Japanese telecast showed Smith repeatedly yelling, “Keep my wife’s name out your fucking mouth.”


Smith would later go on to win the “best actor” category for his role in King Richard, to where he went up on stage to receive the award and attributed his actions earlier in the show as an act of love.

On Monday, Smith offered a formal apology over his social media pages, calling his actions, “unacceptable and inexcusable.”

“Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally,” Smith said in his public statement. “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”

Rock has not responded publicly to the incident and declined to press charges, according to LAPD.

While not an official indictment of what the Academy’s Board of Governors will do, board member Whoopi Goldberg said during Monday’s episode of The View that, “We’re not going to take that Oscar from him. There will be consequences, I’m sure, but I don’t think that’s what they’ll be.”

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