Chappelle is in the midst of a joint comedy tour with Chris Rock, who in March was slapped while presenting on stage at the Academy Awards by actor Will Smith.
“A lot of people forget who Will Smith is,” Chappelle said on stage at Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena, according to British news outlet, The Telegraph. “Then 10 minutes before he was about to get the biggest award… he acted like he was back in Philadelphia.”
Smith won a best actor award for his role as Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena Williams, in the film “King Richard.” But his win was overshadowed by his conduct that night, which was condemned by the Academy and earned Smith a 10-year ban from Academy events.
“Will did the impression of a perfect person for 30 years, and he ripped his mask off and showed us he was as ugly as the rest of us,” Chappelle said. “Whatever the consequences are… I hope he doesn’t put his mask back on again, and lets his real face breathe….I see myself in both men.”
A representative for Chappelle confirmed The Telegraph’s reporting. CNN has reached out to representatives for Rock and Smith for comment.
Chappelle made the comments during the first of three shows as part of their UK tour. They have two consecutive dates scheduled this weekend at London’s O2 arena, with additional dates scheduled throughout Europe.
Rock reportedly also addressed the slap, joking that Smith “hit me over a bullsh-t joke, the nicest joke I ever told,” according to The Telegraph and The Times of London.
In July, Smith opened up about the incident in a video posted to Instagram, saying he was “deeply remorseful.”
