Chris Rock Has Been Obsessed With Jada Pinkett Smith for Almost 30 Years | She “Had No Part” in the Slap Saga

Jada Pinkett Smith is not engaged in the ongoing conflict between her husband Will Smith and entertainer Chris Rock, a source close to the star tells PEOPLE. "Jada has had no part in all of this other than being heckled," the source said.

The conflict started when at the 94th Academy Awards, Rock made a joke about Jada's alopecia, a hair loss condition she is suffering from, while hosting the awards and mocked the actress for her hair. Will Smith, in defense of his wife, got up on the stage and slapped Rock.

Rock addressed the infamous slap in his live Netflix comedy special Chris Rock: Selective Outrage on Saturday, March 4, a year after the notorious incident took place in 2022. The comedian sprinkled his special with especially scathing jokes about the Smiths and their relationship, per PEOPLE. "Chris is obsessed with her and that's been going on for almost 30 years. Look where he chose to film his Netflix special. Her hometown of Baltimore. Obsessed. Back in 2016 she helped start a movement with the Academy Awards by questioning why there are so few Black members, and Chris took it to this?" the source added.

The referenced incident occurred in 2016 when Jada participated in the "#OscarsSoWhite" campaign by publicly supporting Black actors. Will, 54, was disqualified from the Best Actor category for his work in Concussion that year. "Years ago, his wife said I should quit the Oscars. I shouldn't host 'cause her man didn't get nominated for Concussion. And then he gives me a f***ing concussion," Rock joked during his special.

But the source, a close friend of the Smiths, countered Rock's narrative saying, "She never asked Chris to not host the Oscars ever. She publicly said in a Facebook post at the time Chris would be a great Oscars host and is perfect for the job."

Rock asserted in his special that Jada was to blame for the situation and should be made fun of, adding that he was only responding to what she had started. "I did some jokes about her. Who gives a f***? That's how it is: She starts it, I finish it," Rock said. "That's what the f*** happened. Nobody's pickin' on this b***h. She started this s***. Nobody was pickin' on her."

The source tells PEOPLE that they really condemned this attack on Jada by Rock, and were especially "shocked at how many times Chris used the word b***h in referring to Jada."

Jada is looking ahead despite Rock singling her out, the insider continues sharing. "Right now Jada is focused on her book that will come out this year," the source concluded.

References:

https://people.com/movies/jada-pinkett-smith-had-no-part-in-chris-rock-and-will-smith-drama-source/

https://people.com/movies/chris-rock-slams-will-smith-and-jada-pinkett-smith-entanglement/

Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Dimitrios Kambouris