During the Oscars ceremony earlier this year, actor Will Smith walked on stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock for a “G.I. Jane” joke he told about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith. Security did not intervene during the incident, and Smith later accepted the award for Best Actor. The slap sparked outrage among on stage performers of all types including KISS frontman Paul Stanley. Stanley harshly criticized Hollywood’s reaction. “Wait… Chris Rock makes a bad joke about Jada Pinkett’s appearance,” Stanley tweeted. “Will Smith walks onstage hits him in the face shouts out obscenities & later in tears accepts an Oscar saying “Love makes you do crazy things” to a STANDING OVATION?!? WTF Hollywood. That’s not WOKE. That’s WEAK.”
It was feared by comedians and musicians that since Smith received no punishment the night of the incident, that copycats could emerge. On Tuesday at “Netflix is a Joke: The Festival” at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, comedian Dave Chappelle was attacked by a man carrying weapons. Chappelle was finishing his act when 23-year-old Isaiah Lee jumped onstage and tackled him. Security quickly intervened punching and kicking Lee, and his arm was literally pointing the wrong way as he loaded into an ambulance. A knife blade and replica handgun were recovered from the scene according to the New York Times.
There have been many incidents of audience members rushing the stage, and some have had tragic consequences. Most notably, Pantera and Damageplan guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott was murdered onstage while performing in Columbus, Ohio in 2004. The perpetrator was shot dead by police soon afterward but only after also killing three other people and wounding three more who tried to come to Abbott’s aid.
Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan used his martial arts skills to flip over a stage invader, pin him to the grand and sit on him, impressively without missing a beat in the song during a show in 1997. “It was my stage,” Maynard told podcaster Joe Rogan in 2012. “I wrapped the chord around his neck and had a little slack so I could control him: I don’t know what you’re doing up there.” Keenan continued: “You’re getting knocked out,” he said when asked if how he would react today. “After Dimebag you can’t be too careful. I got two words for you; John Lennon.”
Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards rained repeated guitar blows on a man who rushed the stage during a 1981 concert. In a post-incident interview Richards said: “The only reason I did it was because the security was not there — They were two steps behind. I am watching Mick’s back. I don’t know where this guy is gonna go… You know it’s a kind of automatic, instinctive thing… I just watched my man’s back.”
Overzealous “fans” have also attacked wrestlers numerous times over the years in and around the ring especially during the kayfabe era. The most recent notable example came during a 2019 Hall of Fame speech by Bret “The Hitman” Hart. While Hart was speaking about his Hart Foundation partner Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart, who passed away in 2018, a fan ran into the ring and grabbed him from behind. The camera feed was instantly cut, but security officials and many of the WWE stars gathered at ringside quickly rushed into the ring to aid Hart. Thankfully Chappelle wasn’t harmed on Tuesday. Many other comedians have been attacked on stage in the past, too, including Jim Jeffries.
