Entertainment News Roundup: Will Smith wins first Oscar for tenacious father in ‘King Richard’; Factbox-Celebrities react to Will Smith’s Oscars altercation and more

Below is a summary of the latest entertainment news.

Will Smith Wins First Oscar For Stubborn Dad In ‘King Richard’

Will Smith won his first Oscar on Sunday, shortly after a stunning incident in which he slapped presenter Chris Rock on stage for making a joke about his wife and twice shouting a vulgarity. Smith received the Best Actor award for his portrayal of Richard Williams, the determined father who raised tennis champions Venus and Serena Williams, in King Richard.

Factbox celebs react to Will Smith’s Oscar row

Best actor winner Will Smith shocked audiences when he slapped presenter Chris Rock in the face and shouted vulgarity at the comedian for making a joke about his wife’s hairdo in a moment that overshadowed Sunday’s Oscars had made. Below are some of the reactions from celebrities on social media.

Jessica Chastain wins Best Actress Oscar for The Eyes of Tammy Faye

Jessica Chastain won the Best Actress Oscar on Sunday for her mascara-laden title role as the on-air preaching partner and wife of televised Christian preacher Jim Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, which chronicles the couple’s rise and fall. The Oscar triumph for Chastain, 45, virtually unrecognizable in heavy makeup as Tammy Faye Bakker, followed a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance and capped the third Oscar nomination of her career.

Oscars broadcast ratings rise from last year’s low

About 15.36 million people watched Sunday’s live broadcast of the Oscars on Walt Disney Co’s ABC network, a big jump from last year but the second-lowest viewership ever, according to preliminary ratings. The number of the film industry’s top awards rose 56% from last year’s record-low ratings, ABC said on Monday. Early estimates for the 2021 show, which has been scaled down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, were for 9.85 million viewers.

“CODA” wins the grand prize, Will Smith beats Chris Rock at the Oscars

“CODA,” a heartwarming film about a deaf family with a hearing daughter, won a landmark award for best picture at the Oscars on Sunday, in a ceremony overshadowed by best actor winner Will Smith, the host Chris Rock slapped. “CODA” was the first film from a streaming service, Apple TV+, to win the film industry’s biggest award.

Outbreak of violence overshadows Oscar’s return from pandemic

Packed with much leftover from last year’s pandemic-related show, the Oscars telecast featured a trio of female hosts, a return to lavish musical productions and a heavy dose of comedy, much of it more edgy than usual for the Oscars. It was a bit of that testy humor, delivered by comedian Chris Rock and found offensive by actor Will Smith, that led to Sunday night’s biggest moment – a nominated actor slapping a presenter in the face in anger on live national television .

Ukraine gets a mostly silent salute at the Oscars

Hollywood shared a small part of its big night with the people of Ukraine on Sunday, using text on a screen to ask the world for financial contributions for those suffering from the Russian attack. A few celebrities also made brief comments, but the Oscars broadcast clearly didn’t become a megaphone for messages about Ukraine. Instead, the show’s directors opted for a silent message that didn’t mention Russia, which invaded Ukraine 31 days ago.

Film Academy condemns Will Smith’s slap and begins investigating Oscar incident

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the group that awards the Oscars, on Monday condemned Will Smith’s slap in the face by host Chris Rock at Sunday night’s ceremony and said it had launched a formal investigation into the incident. Smith took the stage during the televised ceremony and slapped Rock in the face after the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife showing up. Less than an hour later, Smith won Best Actor for his role in King Richard.

Will Smith beats Chris Rock on stage and then wins an Oscar

Best Actor winner Will Smith slapped presenter Chris Rock in the face and shouted a vulgarity at the comedian for making a joke about his wife’s hairstyle in a shocking moment that overshadowed Sunday’s Oscars. About 45 minutes later, while accepting his first Best Actor Oscar for his role in King Richard, Smith gave a tearful speech apologizing to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and his fellow contestants, but not to Rock.

The US Supreme Court decides the copyright dispute over Warhol’s Prince painting

In a case that could help clarify when and how artists can use the work of others, the US Supreme Court on Monday approved a copyright dispute between a photographer and Andy Warhol’s estate over Warhol’s 1984 painting of rock star Prince to decide. The judges accepted the Andy Warhol Foundation’s appeal against a lower court’s ruling that his paintings – based on a photograph of Prince taken by photographer Lynn Goldsmith for Newsweek magazine in 1981 – were not protected by a copyright law called fair use be. This doctrine permits the unlicensed use of copyrighted works under certain circumstances.

(With agency contributions.)