ATLANTA — Following Will Smith's release of a video apology Friday for his infamous Oscars slap, Chris Rock took to the stage in none other than Atlanta.
Performing a show at the Fox Theatre, Rock reportedly spoke only briefly about the incident and did not mention the apology specifically - following a trend throughout his "Chris Rock Ego Death World Tour" of keeping the slap at relative arm's length from the rest of his material.
According to CNN, Rock mostly brushed things off once again, disavowing any sense of victimhood and telling Atlantans: "Everybody is trying to be a f****** victim. If everybody claims to be a victim, then nobody will hear the real victims."
CNN reported that Rock went on, making a joking comparison of Smith to the notoriously vengeful rap executive Suge Knight (who was long the subject of pop culture speculation that he was involved in the 1997 killing of Notorious B.I.G. as revenge for the murder of Tupac Shakur months earlier.)
"Even me getting smacked by Suge Smith... I went to work the next day, I got kids," Rock said.
Rock's lines in Atlanta on Friday night did not depart greatly from previous references to the slap he's made during his routine.
Variety reported earlier this week he brought up the incident during a show in New Jersey, saying: "Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face... I’m not a victim. Yeah, that s**** hurt, motherf*****. But I shook that s*** off and went to work the next day. I don’t go to the hospital for a paper cut.”
In the video posted to his YouTube and social media accounts Friday, Smith addressed the slap on camera for the first time.
He offered an explanation for why he didn't apologize the night of the Oscars and said he's reached out to Rock, but has heard the comedian isn't yet at a place where he wants to meet.
"I was fogged out by that point," Smith said of the moments following the slap. "It's all fuzzy. I've reached out to Chris and the message that came back is that he's not ready to talk and when he is, he will reach out."
"So I will say to you, Chris, I apologize to you. My behavior was unacceptable and I'm here whenever you're ready to talk. I want to apologize to Chris' mother. I saw an interview that Chris' mother did and that was one of the things about that moment I didn't realize. I wasn't thinking about how many people got hurt in that moment," Smith added.
Rock has two more Atlanta shows this weekend at the Fox on Saturday and Sunday nights.