Chris Rock Discusses ‘Discriminatory Outcry’ and Oscars Criticism in Netflix Show

Chris Rock addressed the Oscars slap on Saturday evening, with what became Netflix's first live global streaming event.

At the start of his Baltimore show, Rock quipped “I'm going to try to do a show tonight without offending nobody. I'm going to try my best, because you never know who might get triggered.” He then added “People always say words hurt. But anybody who says that has never been punched in the face.”

Rock then concluded his set by commenting on the Oscars slap incident.

Chris Rock addressed the incident with Jada Pinkett Smith's husband, Will Smith, during a stand-up show in Baltimore. Rock, the former Oscars host, alluded that Smith's response to his joke may have had more to do with the couple's relationship than with him.

"You all know what happened to me, getting smacked by Shug Smith," Rock said, referring to the altercation. "It still hurts. I got 'Summertime' ringing in my ears. But I'm not a victim, baby. You'll never see me on Oprah or Gayle crying ... I took that hit like Pacquiao."

Rock expressed his admiration for Will Smith, saying, "I love Will Smith, my whole life. I have rooted for Will Smith my whole life ... now I watch 'Emancipation' just to see him get whooped."

Rock, who stars in the period drama “Emancipation,” plays an enslaved man in the movie. During the first 50 minutes of his special, titled “Chris Rock: Selective Outrage,” the comedian discussed a variety of topics, including addiction, abortion, racism in America, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, the Kardashian family, and “wokeness.” He commented on the question he gets asked often, “How come you didn’t do nothing back that night?” to which he said his parents taught him not to fight in front of white people.

Chris Rock expressed his views on the "wokeness" movement and its implications. He supports the notion of social justice and equal rights for those who are marginalized, but has a problem with the fact that there is a selectivity in the application of outrage. He gave the example of Michael Jackson and R. Kelly, both of whom have committed similar offences, but one of them has better songs.

Comedian Chris Rock discussed the issue of America's division during a standup performance. Joking about the situation, Rock commented that Americans have it worse than Ukrainians because the latter are united - an observation that was met with laughter.

In addition, the comedian touched on his romantic life, remarking that he noticed the dirtiness of his pillow cases and thus gained appreciation for how much women do for men.

Chris Rock opened his latest standup special, “Total Blackout,” with a joke about his dating life.

The 56-year-old comedian admitted that he was attempting to pursue women who are a decade to a decade and a half younger than him.

“Don’t hate the player, hate the game,” Rock said. “I didn’t get rich and stay in shape to talk about Anita Baker. I’m trying to f— Doja Cat.”

This special marks Rock’s sixth foray into standup comedy, as well as his second for Netflix following “Tamborine” in 2018. That was directed by Bo Burnham.

A special pre-show event was held featuring comedian Ronny Chieng live from Los Angeles. He joked that they were attempting to "kill off traditional TV" by putting an end to cable subscription packages, and that Baby Boomers were cancelling the last of these packages. Following the show, there was a post-show special featuring comedians Arsenio Hall, Dana Carvey, David Spade, Yvone Orji and others.