Months after he was slapped in the face on stage during the Academy Awards by Will Smith, Chris Rock has addressed the incident.
The star was performing at Madison Square Gardens in New York when he made an unsubtle comment regarding the altercation which happened in March after Chris joked about Jada Pinkett-Smith's hair loss.
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Chris was on stage alongside Kevin Hart and Dave Chapelle when he said: "Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face," according to ET Online.
WATCH: Will Smith assaults Chris Rock at the Oscars
Chris elaborated during his set the following day at when during a segment about overly senstive people, US Weekly reported that he said: “I’m not a victim."
The statement comes days after Kevin - who is friends with both Will and Chris - spoke to Entertainment Tonight and said: "Will is apologetic, you know, he's in a better space, of course, than what he was after.
"People are human and as humans sometimes we make mistakes. So it's not about talking about the past, it's about acknowledging the present and doing your best to move forward."
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Kevin continued: "I can only hope that the two of them find a way to find some solace in that and move past it … I still love him, I still love Chris, and, you know, you can’t judge a person by one thing. Ultimately, life goes on and people grow, so give him the opportunity to do so."
Chris has not been vocal about the slap
Tyler Perry, who witnessed the event also explained what happened to Gayle King. "There's a difference between comforting and deescalating, that's number one," he said. "And I left early to get to Chris to make sure he was okay. Being friends with both of them has been very difficult."
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He added that he believed that Will was "wrong in no uncertain circumstances" and he told him as much.
© Photo: Getty ImagesChris joked about Jada Pinkett-Smith's hair loss
"Trust me, as painful as it was for all of us in the room, it was as painful for Chris, who was a pure champion for the way he handled it," he added. "But I want you to understand that something happened that was extremely painful for Will as well.
"That is no excuse. He was completely wrong for what he did. But something triggered him - that is so out of everything he is."
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