2022 Oscars See Second-Lowest Ratings in History Despite Will Smith Incident

Will Smith (R) hit Chris Rock as Rock spoke on stage during the 94th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Calif., on March 27, 2022. Brian Snyder/Reuters

Sunday night’s 94th Academy Awards drew higher numbers of viewers than last year’s Oscars, but it still drew the second-lowest ratings in its history.

The 2022 Oscars, which was aired on Disney-owned ABC, is estimated to have drawn 15.4 million viewers and had a rating of 2.9 among adults 18 to 49, according to Deadline Hollywood, citing Nielsen. It represents a 56 percent increase in viewership over the 2021 awards show.

However, despite the leap, both the 2021 and the 2022 Academy Awards shows are the worst and second-worst-rated in history, respectively, according to Nielsen. Before 2021’s show, the Oscars had never dropped below 20 million viewers.

The most-talked-about moment of the 2022 show was actor Will Smith appearing to slap comedian Chris Rock as Rock was presenting an award—likely drawing in more viewers as numerous users posted screenshots or video clips of the incident on social media. The slap was also heavily covered by media outlets on Sunday night and Monday morning.

Neither ABC, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, nor ABC issued a statement about whether the incident provided a boost in viewership. Smith later apologized to the Academy during a speech as he won Best Actor for his role in “King Richard,” although he didn’t mention Rock.

Earlier in the night, Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head. “Jada I love you, ‘G.I. Jane 2,’ can’t wait to see it,” Rock said as the camera cut to Pinkett Smith. Her husband then walked on the stage and appeared to slap Rock before shouting at him.

The Los Angeles Police Department said Rock, 57, declined to press charges against Smith, 53. Rock hasn’t publicly commented on the matter.

“LAPD investigative entities are aware of an incident between two individuals during the Academy Awards program,” the police department told CNN. “The incident involved one individual slapping another. The individual involved has declined to file a police report. If the involved party desires a police report at a later date, LAPD will be available to complete an investigative report.”

On Monday, the Academy said in a statement that it will investigate the matter and condemned Smith’s actions.

“The Academy condemns the actions of Mr. Smith at last night’s show,” the statement read. “We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct, and California law.”

The Epoch Times has contacted ABC for comment.