Jimmy Kimmel Jokes About Will Smith Slap in 2023 Oscars Monologue

Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel took some jabs at Will Smith during his opening monologue.

Last year, Smith slapped Chris Rock on the Oscars stage after the comedian made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith. Shortly after, Will won best actor for “King Richard.”

Kimmel didn’t hold back in roasting Smith at the 2023 show, telling the crowd, “Five Irish actors are nominated tonight, which means the chances of a fight just went way up.”

He went on, “We want you to have fun, feel safe and, most importantly, we want me feel safe… So, we have strict policies in place. If anyone in this theater commits an act of violence at any point during the show, you will be awarded the Oscar for Best Actor and permitted to give a 19 minute-long speech. But seriously, the Academy has a crisis team in place. If anything unpredictable or violent happens during the show, sit there and do absolutely nothing. Maybe even give the assailant a hug.”

The comedian insisted, “And if any of you get mad at a joke and decide you want to get jiggy with it — it’s not going to be easy.” That’s when Jimmy listed off all the characters and stars that would come to his aid if needed, like Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), actress Michelle Yeoh, the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) and Spider-Man (a visibly uncertain Andrew Garfield).

In January, “Extra’s” Jenn Lahmers spoke with Kimmel about hosting the Oscars. When asked if he would address the elephant in the room, Kimmel quipped, “What do you mean? There’s an elephant? I love elephants. I saw a lot of elephants on safari.”