Hollywood Slaps Back: Netflix And Sony Halt Will Smith Projects
Hollywood is responding to Will Smith’s “insane” attack against comedian Chris Rock at the Oscars with a one-two punch of their own. After the actor tearfully resigned from The Academy on Friday, reports are suggesting that at least a few studios have decided to halt Smith’s projects for the time being, including Bad Boys 4 and the Netflix crime drama Fast and Loose.
Netflix was urgently searching for a new director to take on the planned thriller Fast and Loose, set to star Smith, as he was heavily favored to win the Oscar for best actor. Smith portrayed Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena, in King Richard for which he earned a reported $40 million.
However, those plans changed not long after Smith stormed the stage and attacked Rock. The company quietly decided to move the project to the back burner until further notice, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sony is also rebuking Smith's behavior. The fourth installment to Smith’s Bad Boys franchise was reportedly well into development, with the actor receiving 40-pages of the script before Sony decided to put the kibosh on production indefinitely.
Sony is likely to pause a few of Smith's other pre-production projects, including a Hancock sequel and a Karate Kid sequel. Smith reportedly earned $17 million for his role in Bad Boys 3 and upwards of $3 million for his part in the original Karate Kid.
There’s also Smith’s slave escape drama Emancipation, which is already in post-production over at Apple+. The streamer paid a record $120 million for the film and planned a debut in 2022, though they had yet to announce a release date. The company hasn't commented on the future of the project.
Smith resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday. He wrote to the Academy's disciplinary committee: "I will fully accept any and all consequences for my conduct. My actions at the 94th Academy Awards presentation were shocking, painful, and inexcusable."
While studios have been working hard to distance themselves from Smith, fans have been showing up en masse to support Chris Rock. His show Chris Rock Live has become one of the hottest tickets around, with ticketing company TickPick announcing on Twitter that they had sold more tickets in the 48 hours following the slap than did in the previous month.
Source: Hollywood Reporter, TMZ
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