From left: Chris Rock, Nia Long, Will Smith.Photo: Gregg DeGuire/WireImage, Christopher Polk/Variety via Getty, Steve Granitz/FilmMagic
Nia Longis hoping for a peaceful resolution between her palsChris RockandWill Smith.
Speaking withThe Hollywood Reporter, theBest Man: The Final Chaptersactress opened up about communicating with both actors after Smith, 54, struck Rock, 57, in the face earlier this year during the 94thAcademy Awards.
“I checked on him and Chris, because I’m friends with both of them,” said Long, 52. “That was hard for me,because those are like my brothers, both of them.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.
Chris Rock; Will Smith.Getty (2)
The actor explained in a statement days later that the punchline was “too much for me to bear"and he “reacted emotionally.”
In the weeks following the show, Smithresigned from the Academyof Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was eventuallybanned from attending Academy eventsfor a decade. He has sinceapologized multiple times for his actions, including to Rock.
In her interview withTHR, Long — who starred with Smith onThe Fresh Prince of Bel-Airand in multiple films, and appeared alongside Rock in the documentariesGood Hair(2009) andThe N Word(2004) — said she is hoping they can bury the hatchet.
“I guess my prayer is that they can come to a place where they can at least be civil with one another and make peace,” she said.
RELATED VIDEO: Oscars Producer Will Packer Responds toWill Smith’s Public Apology: “He’s Being So Transparent”
Smith opened up more about the incident onThe Daily Show with Trevor NoahMonday, admitting, “There’s many nuances and complexities to it, you know, but at the end of the day, I just — I lost it.”
“It was a lot of things,” he said about the motivation for his actions and his past history of fearing conflict. “It was the little boy that watched his father beat up his mother. All of that bubbled up in that moment … You know, just, that’s not who I want to be … I was gone. That was arage that had been bottled for a really long time.”
Smith added in reference toTrevor Noahdescribing the awards show as one of the “best and worst” nights of the actor’s life, “I have no independent recollection … That was a horrific night, as you can imagine.”
TheMen in Blackactor is about to return to the big screen for the first time sincethe Oscarsin the slavery epicEmancipation, for which he is still technically eligible to be nominated for another Academy Award.
“But he wouldn’t be able to accept the award in person if he were to win,” Entertainment Weekly Awards Correspondent Dave Karger told PEOPLE.
source: people.com
