Will Smith seeks redemption from Oscars slap with ‘Bad Boys 4’: Report

Will Smith is banking his redemption on his new movie, Bad Boys: Ride or Die.

According to a new report by People Magazine, the 55-year-old actor is hoping to make a comeback after staining his reputation at the 2022 Oscars, where he slapped host Chris Rock for making a joke at the expense of his “wife,” Jada Pinkett Smith, who later revealed that the pair had been secretly split up since 2016.

A film industry insider told the outlet, “Bad Boys is not a risk. It’s a good piece to see him soar. A talent as ambitious and financially successful as Will does not go away with one mistake.”

Another source declared that Smith “should be back on top” should Bad Boys 4 perform well.

Previously, yet another tipster spilled to the outlet that the I Am Legend star “has had plenty of time to reflect on his life” and is ready to “move forward and continue with his career.”

Meanwhile, some film critics noted Smith’s apparent attempt to address the incident in the buddy cop flick, where his co-star Martin Lawrence slaps him four times in a scene.

One review published by the Daily Beast called the scene a “tasteless nod to The Slap meant to rehab Smith’s image,” adding that the “late meta joke about Smith’s Oscar scandal proves a predictable bit of self-consciousness and does less to enliven the proceedings than merely fulfill expectations.”