Chris Rock speaks onstage at the 94th Academy Awards held at Dolby Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center on March 27th, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.
Originally appeared on E! Online
Chris Rock is all about forgiving and forgetting.
It’s been three years since the comedian hosted the Oscars and, infamously, was slapped onstage by Will Smith over a joke he made about Smith's now-estranged wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
But as for whether Rock would ever return as host, he coyly told E! News at the annual Vanity Fair Oscars Party, “You never know.”
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“This is what I would say, the most miserable people on earth are people that can’t forgive,” he continued. “And not just people, you have to forgive yourself sometimes. So, hey, you never know.”
The "Madagascar" alum also had a sage reply as to whether he’s fully moved on from the now-infamous incident, which ultimately led to Smith receiving a 10-year ban from Academy events and his later public apology to Rock.
“I live in forgiveness,” Rock noted. “True love starts at forgiveness.”
This year, the Oscars were helmed by late-night host Conan O’Brien, who delivered a seamless show full of lightly-barbed quips, a musical number promising not to waste time — only to sing for almost two minutes — and a surprising number of Dune-inspired sand worms.
And his fellow "Saturday Night Live" alum was fully on board with the hosting performance, as Rock gushed, “I thought it was amazing, incredible. They should let him host every year.”
Among O'Brien's gags throughout the show was a hilarious exchange with Adam Sandler, in which he called out the "Happy Gilmore" star for arriving in gym shorts and a sweatshirt, as well as revealing his two celebrity hall passes: Scarlett Johansson and 95-year-old June Squibb, who starred in 2024’s "Thelma".
And, in an especially sweet move, O'Brien made sure there were snack boxes under the chair for every celebrity (or their seat filler).
The boxes — which, according to one user on social media, contained a bottle of water and a pretzel — also included a hand-written note from the O'Brien host.
“Dear Star/Seat filler, I hope you enjoy these complimentary snacks,” the letter read, as seen in a photo obtained by E! News. He then quipped, “I tried my best to include a gummy but Disney said that was a ‘hard pass.’ Have a great night, Conan.”
