The slap heard around the world meant that whether you were inside the Dolby Theatre attending the 94th Annual Academy Awards or viewing from the comfort of your living room, you were suddenly totally tuned in. The episode in which Best Actor nominee Will Smith strode up on stage to smack presenter Chris Rock after Rock referred to his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, left most Americans bewildered, confused, and with a lot to unpack.
First, there were questions about what exactly had happened—because if you were watching the broadcast in the U.S., the screen froze and the sound was cut. Ultimately, it became clear that what had transpired wasn’t staged though, in large part because of the shocked look on Lupita Nyongo’s face—and from that moment on, the mood of the night shifted. Host Amy Schumer asked, “Did I miss anything? There’s like a different vibe in here,” when it was her turn at the mic again. The rhetorical question was met with strained laughter, but the understood answer was an emphatic yes.
And while Twitter and group text chains across the country were alight with questions like “What the hell was that?!”, guests at the awards ceremony exited the theatre and made their way to the Vanity Fair Oscars’ after-party hosted by Radhika Jones at the Wallis Annenberg Center in Beverly Hills because, as they say, the show must go on.
Once through the main checkpoint, manned by Vanity Fair staffers scanning passes, Oscars were passed around “just to feel the weight of them.” The gloves were off, and guests seemed to let down their hair. Celebs posed for their photo op on the sapphire blue carpet before entering an open-air space that had been erected entirely by Vanity Fair and spanned one city block. The party was divided into two tented areas with bars, and there was an astroturf-covered courtyard in between. The first tent is where a pregnant Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas held court. Wanda Sykes, having just finished hosting, moved through the crowd while Diddy continued to share his thoughts on what had gone down in the Dolby to a small group of intently listening friends. Billie Eilish mingled, Kevin Costner smouldered, Bill Murray—wearing a beret and a bolero—shimmied to “Dancing Queen” with Kirsten Dunst and Sofia Coppola, and Kristen Stewart parked herself by the bar. Midway through the party, Will Smith rolled in with Jada, daughter Willow, and sons Trey and Jaden. The DJ threw it back to 1997 and switched the track to Smith’s summer anthem “Gettin Jiggy Wit It,” followed by “Welcome to Miami.” Smith held his Oscar—and his head—high as he rapped, danced, and grinned from ear to ear and, in doing so, probably gave the best performance of the night.
1 / 35
Anya Taylor-Joy
2 / 35
Kim Kardashian and Kendall Jenner
3 / 35
Zendaya
4 / 35
Addison Rae and Lana Condor
5 / 35
Timothée Chalamet
6 / 35
Zoë Kravitz
7 / 35
Megan Thee Stallion and Vin Diesel
8 / 35
Jacob Elordi
9 / 35
Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker
10 / 35
Andrew Garfield and Aziz Ansari
11 / 35
Emily Ratajkowski and Hailey Bieber
12 / 35
Hunter Schafer and Dominic Fike
13 / 35
Kristen Stewart and Rami Malek
14 / 35
Kim Kardashian and Tyler Perry
15 / 35
Julia Fox and Tessa Thompson
16 / 35
Jessica Alba and Sofia Vergara
17 / 35
Serena Williams
18 / 35
James Corden and Sienna Miller
19 / 35
Ariana Debose
20 / 35
Dan Levy
21 / 35
Maggie Gyllenhaal and Dakota Johnson
22 / 35
Janelle Monáe and Stephanie Silva
23 / 35
Elsa Hosk and Taylor Hill
24 / 35
Natalie Portman and Jeremy O.Harris
25 / 35
Lori Harvey
26 / 35
Nicky Hilton Rothschild
27 / 35
Patricia Clarkson and Sophie Turner
28 / 35
Jessica Chastain
29 / 35
Finneas and Jon Batiste
30 / 35
Este Haim, Alana Haim & Danielle Haim
31 / 35
Hailey Bieber
32 / 35
Rita Ora and Isla Fisher
33 / 35
Diana Silvers
34 / 35
