Will Smith has won the Oscar for best actor for portraying Venus and Serena Williams' father Richard in the tennis biopic King Richard, accepting the trophy minutes after he went viral for slapping presenter Chris Rock onstage.
"Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family," Smith said through tears during his acceptance speech on Monday.
"Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father, just like they said, just like they said about Richard Williams. But love will make you do crazy things.
“Being able to love and care for my mother, my family, my wife - thank you for this honour. Thank you for this moment. And thank you on behalf of Richard and Oracene and the entire Williams family. Thank you. I hope the Academy invites me back.”
The actor smacked presenter Chris Rock in the face with an open hand and shouted at the comedian for making a joke about his wife's appearance earlier at the Oscars ceremony.
Rock made a joke about the hairstyle of Smith's wife Jada Pinkett Smith that referenced the movie G.I. Jane, in which actress Demi Moore shaved her head.
Pinkett Smith has been open about having alopecia.
Smith, who won the Oscar for best actor for King Richard, stormed onto the stage and slapped Rock in what at first appeared to be a scripted joke.
But the mood turned sombre moments later when Smith, back in his seat, shouted back, "Keep my wife's name out of your f---ing mouth".
A clearly shaken Rock went on to present the award for best documentary feature to Summer of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).
The 94th Academy Awards returned to the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood and had a host (three of them) for the first time in four years.
The awards followed strict COVID-19 protocols and featured performances by Billie Eilish and the cast of Disney's Encanto.
Even from far away, the world still stopping for a minute to think about the war in Ukraine. “We’d like to have a moment of silence to show our support for the people of Ukraine,” a screen read, as the Dolby Theatre entered into silence.
Sci-fi film Dune by Denis Villeneuve starring Timothee Chalamet swept up at today's awards taking home Best Sound, Best Original Score, Best Production Design and Best Film Editing among others.
Troy Kotsur took home the award for best supporting actor for his work in CODA, a film about a child with deaf parents, and dedicated the award to “the deaf community, the Coda community, the disabled community".
Best Director went to Jane Campion - the first time two women have won Best Director Oscars two years in a row, following Nomadland’s Chloe Zhao in 2021.
Here are the big winners from this year's Hollywood night of nights:
Best Picture: CODA
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Best Actor: Will Smith, King Richard
Best Supporting Actor: Troy Kotsur, CODA
Best Supporting Actress: Ariana DeBose, West Side Story
Best Director: Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog
International film: Drive My Car (Japan)
Best Original Song: Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell, No Time to Die Best
Animated Feature: Encanto
