First time I’ve ever seen him go off – Will Smith’s mom

The mother  of Will Smith has told of her shock at his attack on Chris Rock at the Oscars on Sunday night – describing it as entirely out of character.

Carolyn Smith, 85, still lives in Philadelphia, where her 53-year-old son grew up. Smith’s father Willard, a violent alcoholic, divorced Carolyn in 2000, and died in 2016.

Carolyn said she dressed up to watch the Los Angeles ceremony from her home and was startled by her son’s behavior.

‘He is a very even, people person,’ she said on Monday on a local news station, Action News.

‘That’s the first time I’ve ever seen him go off. First time in his lifetime.

‘I’ve never seen him do that.’ Carolyn said she spoke to the actor on Monday, amid the drama, and told him to get some rest, and go on vacation.

She said that she knew he would ride out the controversy.

‘I am proud of him being him,’ she said, adding that she desperately hoped her son would win the best actor award.

He was given the statuette shortly after storming the stage to slap Rock – an act for which he apologized on Monday.

Carolyn said he deserved to win the Best Actor award for his performance in King Richard.

‘I know how he works, how hard he works,’ she said.

‘And he never half steps. I’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting. When I heard the name, I was just, ‘Yes!”

She added: ‘I thought he should have been given one (Oscar) for all of them (his films).’

Will Smith’s younger sister Ellen Smith, 50, who was with their mother, sister Pam, and others at the family home, agreed that she was confident he would overcome the current drama.

‘I’ve had conversations with him, and it like really kind of broke my heart listening to the things he’s said he had to go through to get to where he is,’ she said.

Smith is known for his clean-cut image, but he has had previous run-ins with the law.

In 1989, the actor and rapper spent a night in jail over his involvement in an incident that, according to Philadelphia police, almost left his record producer, William Hendricks, blind.

Days after winning a Grammy Award, he was charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and criminal conspiracy. Charges were later dropped.

Smith is close to his mother, posting frequent photos of them together on Instagram.

In January, he shared a video of them dancing, captioning it: ’85 Today! Happy Bday, Mom-Mom. Let’s dance our way to 100.’

On Mother’s Day last year, he wrote: ‘Happy Mommy’s Day, Mommy! And Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mothers of the world.

‘Oh… and Mom, I’m sorry about that time when I was a senior in high school and you caught me in the kitchen with my girlfriend.

‘But, really you should’ve been asleep.’