Today I Learned: The Wayans Brothers Predicted Will Smith's Oscars Slap 23 Years Ago at the MTV Awards
If there's one Oscars moment you remember from this year's ceremony, it's Will Smith smacking Chris Rock after the comedian made a cringey joke about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
In the immediate aftermath of the smack heard around the world, Marlon Wayans brought it to our attention that he and his brothers had predicted the incident 23 years ago in a hilarious skit aired during the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards.
In an Instagram post last night, Wayans uploaded the skit, in which his brother Shawn Wayans roasts a bunch of celebrities while on stage, including Britney Spears, Sisqó, Destiny's Child, Jay-Z, and Sean Combs. Midway through his speech, Wayans is jumped on stage and "beat up" by people dressed as the celebrities he teased.
Marlon Wayans paired this throwback video with a hilarious caption, saying:
"Maaaaan, not to "kick" a brother when he's down... BUT we predicted this shit exactly. When art imitates life then LIFE actually happens. Shit! We were way ahead of our time. #thesejustjokes let's laugh again."
With this prescient reminder, Marlon Wayans may have established The Wayans Brothers and as the comedian equivalent of The Simpsons!
Speaking of Jay-Z and strange callbacks, Elliot Wilson, CCO of TIDAL, also decided to remind us all of an interview Will Smith did where he recalled how Jay-Z phoned Smith to tell him that he thought Smith will "never make a better piece of entertainment" than the time the King Richard star slapped a reporter in Russia for kissing him without his consent.
Jay-Z claimed that the slap had amused him so much that he and Beyonce had considered canceling their show so they could stay in and watch the slap video over and over.
All this just cements in our minds that Smith's go-to expression of disapproval is the slap. We wonder if Jay-Z called Smith after his Oscar smack, too.
For more entertainment news and commentary, check out Enstarz! We bring you the latest on your favorite celebrities, TV shows, and films.
