Chris Rock ‘Saved the Oscars’ After Will Smith Slap: Show Producer

Will Smith slaps Chris Rock onstage during the 94th Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Calif., on March 27, 2022. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

Oscars producer Will Packer said in an interview Friday that Chris Rock saved the Academy Awards telecast on Sunday after Will Smith appeared to slap the comedian on Sunday evening.

“It was like somebody poured concrete in that room,” Packer told “Good Morning America” on Friday. “It sucked the life out of that room and it never came back,” he recalled, saying that the audience was left wondering, “Is this real? How am I supposed to react?”