Will Smith Teased a Guy for Being Bald in 1991, and We've Got the Evidence
Published March 30 2022, 2:03 p.m. ET
Will Smith on 'The Arsenio Hall Show' in 1991.
Unfortunately, the 2022 Academy Awards didn't go off without a hitch. Will Smith and Chris Rock's altercation continues to make headlines days after the last Oscar was awarded.
As a refresher, the King Richard actor slapped the comedian after he joked about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, and her shaved head.
"Jada, I love you, G.I. Jane 2 — can’t wait to see it," Chris said.
The Red Table Talk host has alopecia, an autoimmune condition characterized by rapid hair loss. On the broadcast, she is seen rolling her eyes at the joke. Then seconds later, Will appears on stage and slaps Chris across the face for making fun of her.
His violent outburst suggested that he takes Jada's health condition very seriously. However, an old clip of the actor from The Arsenio Hall Show suggests that he previously thought baldness was a joking matter.
Keep scrolling to watch a recently resurfaced clip of the show from 1991. Plus, learn how the man who was the subject of Will's bald joke feels about the latest incident.
Will Smith previously teased a man for being bald.
As it turns out, Will Smith previously poked fun at a man for being bald. Numerous users on Twitter have shared the clip from The Arsenio Hall Show in 1991.
In the video, Will is talking to Arsenio. "You can’t do that in this world, man. You can’t do that. Arsenio, they got rules. They got rules, like, he has a rule. The bass player? He got a rule. He’s got to wax his head every morning. That’s a rule," Will says.
Then the camera pans to a bald man from the show's house band, who is seen laughing along with Will. He is later identified as bass player John B. Williams.
After hearing some disapproving groans from the audience, Will added, "Oh, these are jokes, man, c’mon."
The bald man who was the butt of Will Smith's joke discusses it 31 years later.
Following the Will Smith and Chris Rock altercation, Rolling Stone reached out to John B. Williams, who was the subject of Will's bald joke on The Arsenio Hall Show.
Fortunately, he has no hard feelings. "I didn’t take it seriously. He was a comedian. He was the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He was a rapper. I took it as a joke. I laughed it off. It was a show. It was cool. It didn’t bother me at all," he told the outlet.
He also shared his thoughts on what went down at the Oscars this year. He seemed to have a neutral stance.
“Chris Rock is a comedian. I like Chris Rock. When Chris Rock made the comment, Will was laughing. It wasn’t until it became obvious Jada didn’t think it was funny that Will went to her defense," he said.
Speaking about Will, John continued, “Love makes you do all kinds of things. That’s his wife, who he loves. He just reacted from outrage. I have sometimes reacted from outrage.”
Well, it looks like there is no blood between Will and John B. Williams, which is great!
If only we could say the same about Will and Chris.