The awards show will be remembered elsewhere, however, as Smith previously caused an uproar when he stormed onto the stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock.

Chris Rock briefly joked about Smith's wife. Looking down at her shaved head, he said, "GI Jane 2 - I can't wait to see that." He was referring to the '90s film "GI Jane" ("The Jane Files"), in which Demi Moore played a soldier with close-cropped hair. Smith's wife Jada Pinkett Smith, however, suffers from pathological hair loss and has spoken about this several times publicly. After the remark, Will Smith angrily ran onto the stage and lashed out at Chris Rock, when he was back in his seat he repeatedly shouted, "Keep my wife's name out of your damn mouth!"

Chris Rock looked irritated for a moment and then quipped, "It was the greatest night in television history!"

Will Smith: "Looking like the crazy dad..."

For a short time there was irritation as to whether the incident could have been part of the show. But that was apparently not the case.

Smith received his Oscar a little later and tearfully declared in his acceptance speech: "You have to protect your family." Art sometimes imitated life, he said. "I look like the crazy dad they said about Richard Williams. But love makes you do the craziest things."

In a tweet, Smith later stated, "The world would be a better place if we stopped responding to words with violence."

"King Richard" was nominated in a total of six categories, including "Best Picture". However, Smith won the only Oscar.