Will Smith Impersonator Says Offers Are Pouring In For Him After Infamous Oscars Slap

A Will Smith lookalike has claimed business has been booming for him right after the “King Richard” actor slapped comedian Chris Rock at the 94th Academy Awards in what went on to come to be 1 of the most viral times of the yr.

Shad Ellis, 43, has invested the earlier 25 several years making use of his actual physical similarities with Smith to receive a dwelling. He appears as a doppelgänger at nightclubs, weddings and company gatherings across the world and costs all over $750 for every gig.

The guy from Bedford, England, claimed delivers were now pouring in soon after the infamous Oscars 2022 slap. Strangers reportedly even stop him on the streets to inquire his feeling about the incident. 

“I get feedback about it everyday,” he explained to Jam Push, according to the New York Submit. “I had a male very last week stop me to say how considerably I look like Will Smith. We spoke for a little bit, and he ended the dialogue by jokingly indicating, ‘Don’t slap me.’”

Ellis said he does not “condone” violence, but added he could see “both sides” of the argument.

Smith had slapped Rock at the Oscars in excess of a joke the latter manufactured about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s hair. Rock joked about Pinkett Smith, who suffers from a issue known as alopecia that triggers hair loss, looking ready to star in “G.I. Jane 2.”

“I consider we all as human beings are capable of a flashpoint induced by a uncooked emotion or sensation, and regardless of the predicament, the moment you see crimson, all the things close to you gets blurred,” Ellis reported about the incident, in accordance to the outlet. “I strongly disagree — he need to [not] have slapped him, but how many of us do an action we straight away regret immediately after accomplishing it, pushed by being caught in your inner thoughts or the minute.”

Ellis functions portion-time as the actor’s lookalike. Even though he did not point out his annual profits or web truly worth, he reported he acquired a home by the age of 21, and was ready to “drive wonderful vehicles.” 

Even though his funds have witnessed a important uptick because Smith’s spur-of-the-minute act, Ellis stated he even now has not achieved the actor in man or woman.

“I was established to work with him before this calendar year as his body double on a challenge, but even though I was there filming, news arrived in that he had to reschedule his aspect in the shoot,” he explained, according to LADbible. “That was a bit gutting.”

Comedian Chris Rock (L) opted not to press fees following Will Smith (R) slapped him at the Oscars Photograph: AFP / Robyn Beck