What a slap in the face.
In footage obtained by TMZ, a video from last year shows Oscar winner Will Smith demonstrating the art of a faux slap to a group of kids.
The youngster, reportedly named Chris — an unfortunate coincidence — asked Smith how he fakes fights in his famous films.
Naturally, the seeming slapaholic showed him.
While Smith didn’t actually slap this Chris, it was eerily foreboding of the series of unfortunate events that were the 94th Academy Awards.
At the 2022 Oscars Sunday evening, Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock across the face after he made an off-color joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s alopecia.
“Get my wife’s name out of your f–king mouth!” Smith shouted — twice — from his front-row seat at a baffled Rock post-brawl. Will has since apologized for his actions, including to Rock, and on Tuesday morning Jada finally responded to the controversy by posting about this being “a season for healing and I’m here for it” on her Instagram account.
The shocking slap — televised to homes around the world — was a hit on Twitter, where internet jokesters crafted a mint of memes about the smackdown.
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel even referred to the altercation as “the old ‘Hitch’ slap,” referring to Smith’s knee-slapping comedy from 2005.
Kimmel, who originally thought the smack was staged, said he quickly realized it wasn’t fake at all.
“In one stunning moment – the night went from ‘Oscars – So What?’ to ‘Oscars So WHAAAAAAT?!'” he joked on his show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
Other late-night comics also chimed in, including “The Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon, who said it was “nice for all of us to come together and say ‘holy crap’ at the same time.”
“Get ready for next year’s 95th Academy Award Oscar Slaptacular Death Match. Five nominees enter — one exits,” joked Stephen Colbert, host of “The Late Show.”
But this isn’t the first time Smith has struck out.
In 2012, the “King Richard” actor slapped prankster Vitalii Sediuk masquerading as a journalist when he tried to kiss Smith on the cheek at the Moscow premiere of “Men in Black III.”
“What the hell is your problem, man?” Smith chided Sediuk before grazing his face with a backhanded slap.
