Will Smith's Oscar slap proves to have damaged his reputation
New York, New York – The slap heard around the world has had a devastating effect on Will Smith’s reputation with consumers.
The newly minted Oscar winner's Q Scores have dropped significantly since he slapped Chris Rock onstage at the Academy Awards in March.
According to Variety VIP, the new data — which is the industry standard for measuring celebrities’ mass appeal — shows that Smith’s reputation has been severely damaged.
Conducted twice a year in January and July, 1,800 industry consumers from age 6 and up are surveyed about their opinion on famous figures.
Prior to the incident, the beloved Fresh Prince of Bel Air star had a positive Q score of 39, meaning that 39% of the respondents cited him as one of their favorite celebrities.
By July, his score dropped to 24.
On the other hand, Smith’s negative score more than doubled, from less than 10 to 26, meaning that 26% of those surveyed have a "fair" or "poor" opinion of the actor. The average negative Q score is about 16 or 17.
Q Scores executive vice president Henry Schafer said the decrease is a "very significant and precipitous decline."
Yet, the new data has sparked some debate on Twitter, with many still supporting Smith and critics calling the Q scores "inherently racist and antiquated."
Will Smith's apologies don't seem to have helped his case
The 53-year-old Philadelphia native received his first Academy Award for best actor for his role in King Richard shortly after the jaw-dropping incident that rocked the 94th Oscars on March 27.
Although he apologized to Rock, the Academy and "all the attendees and everyone watching around the world" in a written statement the day after the ceremony, he broke his months-long silence and apologized again to the Everybody Hates Chris creator in a pretaped Facebook video on July 29.
"There is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment," Smith, who is banned from the Oscars for 10 years, said in the video.
"There’s no part of me that thinks that’s the optimal way to handle a feeling of disrespect or insults."
According to his new negative Q score, the apologies don't seem to have helped his reputation.
Cover photo: Collage: ROBYN BECK / AFP