Will Smith Loses His Fourth Film for 2022, This Time it’s Apple Coming Down on Smith

The release date for Will Smith‘s upcoming project with Apple, Emancipation, is unknown.

Variety said the film’s release has been pushed back to 2023. Although Emancipation had no firm launching date, it was expected to be featured at later this year’s autumn film festivals, according to Variety.

Apple has yet to announce an official release date, but a source in Variety claimed that the delay is “the unspoken truth.”

Smith’s next film project, Emancipation, would have been his first since winning best actor for King Richard at the 2022 Oscars. His triumph was overshadowed by his onstage aggression against Chris Rock.

Candle Media has decided to continue working with Smith and his production company, Westbrook Studios, despite multiple projects being reported as having been put on hold.

“It’s a great company. They have great projects. They’re very multi-faceted. They have a film and TV production. They have social media stories like Red Table Talk. … They have a big social media branding operation. So it’s a very good company. We have a 10% stake. That’s where we are for now. We think they’re a really great company,” CEO Kevin Mayer said at the MipTV conference in Cannes, according to Variety.

After Rock made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith‘s bald head, Smith ransacked the stage while Rock was giving an award. Jada Pinkett Smith has alopecia, which she has discussed in the past.

Smith was permitted to accept his Best Supporting Actor Oscar on stage less than an hour after accepting it. The day after, he apologized to Rock and the academy through Instagram. Smith eventually resigned from his membership with the organization.

Despite his departure, the academy banned Smith from attending the Oscars and other events for the next ten years.

Smith has apparently started working on moving on from the situation, and he recently traveled to India to focus on yoga and meditation. The trip coincided with reports that Smith had not “personally apologized” to Rock.

“Will’s ‘spiritual journey’ to India for yoga and meditation seems cynical and ridiculous given that he hasn’t apologized personally to the one person he assaulted in front of millions,” a Hollywood insider told Page Six.

“No amount of Namastes will make up for that,” the source added.

After losing several films and a television show, it is going to take both time and a lot of forgiveness from the public if Will Smith is ever going to return to his status as one of Hollywood’s biggest draws.