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Will Smith isn’t cancelled: Will wins Best Actor at BET Awards

Three months after Will Smith was banned from the Academy Awards for 10 years, the actor has won a BET award for King Richard 3.

At Sunday’s BET Awards, Will Smith won best actor for his performance in King Richard 3 but he didn’t attend the ceremony to accept the award in person.

The honour comes just three months after Will was officially kicked out of the Oscars for a decade because he marched on stage and slapped Chris Rock.

The actor’s career has been in question ever since and he’s had a string of movies cancelled. Does this news mean that Will Smith himself in fact isn’t cancelled?

Will has actually won a BAFTA Award, Golden Globe, NAACP Image Award, SAG Award, Critics Choice Award and of course the Oscar for his role in King Richard, a film where he plays tennis athletes Venus and Serena Williams’ father, Richard Williams.

The awards have all been eclipsed by one of the most infamous moments on live TV, when Will Smith slapped the shit out of Chris Rock over a joke the comedian made about Will’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

Will has since publically apologised to Chris Rock, saying: “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness,”

The actor also resigned from the Academy after being banned from attending their ceremonies for 10 years. In his statement Will said:  “I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken.

“I want to put the focus back on those who deserve attention for their achievements and allow the Academy to get back to the incredible work it does to support creativity and artistry in film.”

“Change takes time and I am committed to doing the work to ensure that I never again allow violence to overtake reason.”

Well, change does take time and the actor has been pretty quiet since. Maybe this new award is a sign that he will be booked again for more incredible films in the near future.