Will Smith reveals how ‘Emancipation’ character comforted him after Oscars controversy

Will Smith revealed he became a more "alive artist" after his headline making movie during Oscars 2022.

The King Richard actor cited his 2021 biography Will as he told Metro.co.uk, “Probably about two years ago I started exposing aspects of myself that I had hidden from myself, for my entire career.”

“I confronted things in my life that I had put off. So I wrote my book,” he added. “And then during that process, I was preparing for King Richard.”

“And I started to see the connection between mining that emotional space and the quality of my acting started to elevate,” the actor told the outlet.

“So then from King Richard into Emancipation,” he continued. “I started to see through confronting my difficulties, through confronting my pain, through confronting my suffering, I was becoming a more alive artist.”

Smith revealed that during his dark days after he smacked Chris Rock on stage, his Emancipation character, Peter, has been a source of comfort. “Peter was embracing his suffering and even finding a way to be grateful for it,” he shared.

“So he has gotten me through many a difficult night with the understanding that suffering – even when self-imposed – when it is embraced through faith and by working to get your heart to a loving space, is always leading [you in] the right direction.”

Before concluding, Smith added, “Peter has been very, very helpful for me over these past seven months.”