Nia Long on Will Smith's Oscar slap: 'That was hard for me'

Nia Long is commenting on the strained relationship between Will Smith and Chris Rock.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on Thursday, Dec. 1, the “Best Man” star, who has worked with both Smith and Rock, said she reached out to the actors after Smith slapped Rock onstage at the Academy Awards earlier this year when the comedian mocked Jada Pinkett Smith.

“I checked on him and Chris, because I’m friends with both of them,” she told the publication. “That was hard for me, because those are like my brothers, both of them.”

The 52-year-old actor continued, “And I guess my prayer is that they can come to a place where they can at least be civil with one another and make peace.”

She and Smith shared the screen for multiple episodes of his hit sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” in the 1990s. She first appeared on the show in Season Two as a prep student named Claudia Prescott. Long then returned to the series in Season Five as a new character named Lisa.

Will and Lisa fell in love and they got engaged. Despite being one of Will’s strongest love interests, the couple never tied the knot and Lisa was last seen in the Season Five finale.

In 2009, Long was featured in Rock’s documentary “Good Hair.” The film followed Rock as he examined the significance of hair in the Black community.

On March 27, Rock, 57, presented an award at the Oscars and made a joke about Pinkett Smith’s bald head, comparing her to a character in the movie “G.I. Jane.” While some members of the audience laughed, Smith and Pinkett Smith, who has publicly spoken about her struggles with alopecia, did not.

Smith, 54, approached the “Grown Ups” star and slapped him before returning to his seat.

After the shocking moment, the “King Richard” actor issued multiple public apologies and resigned as a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The organization also suspended him from all events for 10 years.

Recently, Smith has started speaking more about the slap as he promotes his first film since the incident, “Emancipation.”

During an interview with Fox 5 in Washington, D.C., that was posted to YouTube Nov. 28, Smith said he would “completely understand” if fans may be hesitant to watch his new film.

“If someone was not ready, I would absolutely respect that and allow them their space to not be ready,” he said.

“My deepest concern is my team,” he added. “The people on this team have done some of the best work of their entire careers. And my deepest hope is that my actions don’t penalize my team. So at this point, that’s what I’m working for. That’s what I’m hoping for.”

Smith concluded, “I’m hoping that the material, the power of the film, the timeliness of the story — I’m hoping that the good that can be done would open people’s hearts, at a minimum, to see and recognize and support the incredible artists in and around this film.”

In the movie, which hits theaters Dec. 2, Smith portrays an enslaved man named Peter who flees a plantation in Louisiana.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com