Will Smith Is Reportedly ‘Embarrassed And Hurt’ By Chris Rock’s Standup Special And Wishes Rock Would Just ‘Let It Go’

If you were wondering whether Will Smith sat down and watched Chris Rock’s Selective Outrage (so named for Will’s oddly targeted Oscars slap), live and as it happened with popcorn in hand, then the answer would apparently be “no.” Supposedly, Will hasn’t watched the special (in which Rock unloads on Will, Jada, and their publicly-aired marital drama) at all, but he surely can’t altogether avoid it. We already heard how Jada reportedly feels about the situation, given that her camp revealed that she wasn’t happy (at all) and accused Rock of being obsessed with her for “decades.”

That alleged obsession theory even built itself upon her suspicion that Rock pointedly chose to film the Netflix special in Baltimore because that’s Jada’s hometown. Yet we haven’t really heard much about Will’s emotions regarding the fallout, only that he reportedly tried to privately apologize at some point, and he couldn’t get through to Rock.

Now, a Smith source has spoken to Entertainment Tonight and passes on word that Will wishes that Rock was over it. The source adds that Will feels that he’s worked on himself and tried to make amends to no avail, and further, Will reportedly feels that Netflix made a “disgraceful” move by airing the special. In other words, Will is apparently not feeling so hot about these jokes:

“Will is embarrassed and hurt by what Chris said about him and his family in his Netflix special. He didn’t watch it, but he had people tell him what Chris said … It’s everywhere when you look online and on social media, so Will and Jada have seen comments about it … Will apologized to Chris and would like for Chris to let it go.”

It’s only natural to feel embarrassed about the whole affair, and that word can be used literally here, given that Rock dropped the theory that Will came for him out of frustration over being called “bitch” when Jada not only cuckolded him, but interviewed him on TV about the mess. It’s a complicated situation, and Rock waited nearly a year to publicly air these jokes, something that he’s almost expected to do as a comic. Naturally, that platform will keep the subject alive, and Will’s seeing that before his eyes.

However, we still haven’t heard the answer to this mystery: has Will watched those Madagascar movies (starring Rock and Jada) and experienced that brand of cinematic torture like so many millions who came before him I can’t stop trying to make that into a thing.