Marlon Wayans Addresses Oscars Slap, Says ‘You Can’t Hit Chris Over a Joke’ and He’s ‘Too Small’ Compared to Will

Marlon Wayans is opening up about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars, and why it touched a nerve for him. 

The comedian/actor caught up with the Breakfast Club on Tuesday, and explained his thoughts on the matter, after previously expressing hope that the pair would make “amends.” 

“They’re both friends of mine,” the 49-year-old said. “It was hard for me. It was like watching two brothers fight. It’s hard for me because I’ve known Will 20 years. I’ve known Chris Rock since I was 12. For me, I was just like, ‘Yo.’ I didn’t know what transpired. I felt bad ’cause I’m a brother. As a brother, I felt bad for Tony Rock and Jordan. ’Cause now, Will doing that, you are questioning my loyalty.”

Wayans went on to say a “brother is the most special thing in the world,” and that things would’ve gone down differently if Will slapped Chris’ brother Tony. 

“You can’t hit Chris over a joke. That’s Chris. Chris cracks jokes, that’s what he does and he too small. You play action movies, I Am Legend, you doing behind-the-back pushups, pull ups, and lifting weights. Chris plays crackheads. The heaviest thing this n***a ever lifted was a crack pipe in New Jack City. Why would you hit little Chris Rock? Now if Will slapped The Rock, I’d be like, ‘That n***a gangsta.’ You can’t hit little Chris Rock. Like I said, that’s hard for me ’cause I love them both.”

Wayans explained he was humiliated publicly before, too, when his brothers put him in a “little suit” during the Emmys, and that he was “hurt” after it. 

“What happened and transpired, I know Chris is hurt and he’s humiliated. But from this, he will be better. There’s nothing greater for a comedian than humiliation. Because learning to deal with that, now you come out the gate, now you got these jokes, now you’re building a bigger, better, you.”

On the topic of humiliation, Wayans also spoke on T.I. getting booed offstage during a comedy set at the Barclays Center. As Marlon put it to Tip, “there’s always going to be haters.”

“There’s always going to be somebody with something to say,” Wayans told the radio hosts. “You’re supposed to be challenged like this because you’re supposed to be humiliated like that to understand what you were walking into. Your T.I. status don’t matter in comedy. You’re being humbled. You’re learning a new experience. You’re learning the rules of engagement. You’re learning ‘don’t run the light,’ you’re learning hostile audiences. This is going to make him a better artist. There’s nothing to be discouraged about. There’s nothing to write off.”