Bad Boys director Michael Bay says Will Smith slapping Chris Rock doesn’t compare to ‘babies getting blown up in Ukraine’

Michael Bay has slammed Hollywood for appearing to be more concerned about slapping than the war in . 

Smith, 53, is still facing heat for the shocking moment he stormed the Oscars stage last month and for joking about his wife ’s hair. 

The Fresh Prince of Bel Air actor has since resigned from the Academy and has had his . 

His former colleague Bay, who directed Smith’s blockbusters Bad Boys and Bad Boys 2, is the latest star to weigh in on the Scan**l and has urged the industry to prioritise the right conversations. 

, the filmmaker said: ‘I wasn’t watching. I saw it. First of all, it’s wrong to begin with. I don’t really care. Hollywood gets very self-absorbed. 

‘There are babies getting blown up in the Ukraine right now. We should be talking about  that. I really don’t care.’ 

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, more than 100 children and babies have died as a result of President Vladimir Putin’s order of destruction on the country. 

Sharing his opinion of Smith, Bay continued: ‘I’ve worked with him. He’s not that guy. I’ve never seen him lose his cool like that. I thought it was a set up because I saw his smirk. 

‘I’ve been on set when Will has screwed with people and joked with people. It was a slap. Not a punch. He’s very good at fighting, he’s trained at that. It’s wrong to begin with. Then I knew the yell… he was mad.’ 

The future of Smith’s long-standing and glowing acting career hangs in the balance amid reports that Netflix has ‘quietly halted’ production on upcoming thriller, Fast and Loose, in which the Oscar winner was set to play a leading role. 

As well as this, the outlet claims production on Bad Boys 4 has been halted by Sony, while Apple TV+ has not confirmed a release date for Emancipation – which was slated to come out this year.

However, there have been no official announcements made on any of Will’s upcoming projects.

The day after the Oscars incident, Smith issued a statement in which he apologised to Rock, but the comedian has said he isn’t ready to discuss the controversy yet as he’s ‘still processing’ the situation.