Comedy icon Dave Chappelle said Will Smith’s “mask” came off when he punched Chris Rock at the Oscars earlier this year, revealing something ugly underneath. And he said he hopes the mask stays off.
“A lot of people forget who Will Smith is,” Chappelle said at an event with Rock in Liverpool last week, according to the Telegraph. He reminded the audience that the actor came from a rough part of Philadelphia.
“Then, 10 minutes before he was about to get the biggest prize… he pretended to be back in Philadelphia,” Chappelle said.
He added:
“Will has been impressing a perfect person for 30 years, and he ripped off his mask and showed us he was just as ugly as the rest of us. Whatever the repercussions…I hope he keeps his mask.” don’t put it back on and let his real face breathe.”
“I see myself in both men,” Chappelle said.
Chappelle was attacked onstage just over a month after the Oscars. Rock was present.
“Was that Will Smith?” Rock cracked.
Both Rock and Chappelle joked about their attacks days later at a small club show in Los Angeles.
“At least you got beaten by someone in good standing,” Chappelle told Rock, per The Hollywood Reporter. “I was beaten by a homeless person with leaves in his hair.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
