Jim Carrey Calls Audience ‘Spineless’ for Will Smith’s Standing Ovation at Oscars

Everyone has an opinion on Will Smith smacking Chris Rock at the Academy Awards ceremony last night, and Jim Carrey is no exception. The King Richard star shocked the globe when he slapped Rock during a comedy routine mocking his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, generating a lot of discussion about who was to blame or if both were responsible. Carrey, on the other hand, is firmly behind Rock and has condemned those who sided with Smith that night.

While speaking on CBS’ This Morning, Carrey stated that he was “sickened by the standing ovation,” referring to the unanimous applause that met Smith’s Best Actor win later on in the evening. He continued: “Hollywood is just spineless en masse and it really felt like this is a really clear indication that we aren’t the cool club anymore.” Carrey also voiced his opinion that Smith should have been arrested for the altercation.

You can watch Carrey’s full comments below in the video:

When Gayle King reminded Carrey that Rock had decided not to press charges against Smith, the Liar Liar star said Rock “didn’t want the hassle.” After which, Carrey stated that if he were in Rock’s shoes, he would behave quite differently. The evidence of Smith’s behavior will endure for all time, according to Carrey.

“I’d have announced this morning that I was suing Will for 200 million dollars because that video is going to be there forever, it’s going to be ubiquitous,” Carrey contined. “That insult is gonna last a very long time. If you want to yell from the audience and show disapproval or say something on Twitter, you do not have the right to walk up on stage and smack somebody in the face ‘cuz they said words.”

King offered that things had “escalated” between the two men, but Carrey disagreed. “It didn’t escalate,” he said, interrupting the host. “It came out of nowhere because Will has something going on inside him that’s frustrated.” Carrey concluded by denouncing Smith’s outburst as “cast[ing] a pall” over the hard work of the King Richard cast and crew and the whole Oscars ceremony in general.

“I wish him the best, I really do,” he finished. “I don’t have anything against Will Smith. He’s done great things. But that was not a good moment. It cast a pall over everybody’s shining moment. A lot of people worked really hard to get to that place. And to have their moment in the sun, to get their award for the really hard work they did, it is no mean feat to go through all the stuff you have to go through when you are nominated for an Oscar. It’s a gauntlet of devotion you have to do. It was such a selfish moment that cast a pall over the whole thing.”

Jim Carrey isn’t the only one to side with him. In particular, many comedians — notably Kathy Griffin — have condemned Smith for going over the line and reacting violently to a joke. Perhaps most damning of all, Richard Williams, the real-life figure who was portrayed by Smith in the film, has condemned it. Smith has since apologized for what happened.