'New Batman': Twitter after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock during Oscars 2022

The internet equated Will Smith smacking Chris Rock on the face during Oscars 2022 to the popular meme of Batman.

The viral moment of Oscars 2022 -- when actor Will Smith slapped presenter Chris Rock who cracked a joke on Smith’s wife, actor Jada Pinkett Smith -- stunned people across the world and turned into fodder for meme makers on social media.

Social media is rife with users equating the slap with a popular Batman meme. Some users are even talking of replacing Batman and Robin in the memes with Will Smith and Chris Rock.

petition to replace the Batman meme template with Will Smith onepic.twitter.com/3r33XiMKEvpic.twitter.com/IoLLmxyUzr

— cheena (@ashishnaik118) March 28, 2022

Good Bye Batman-Robin meme...Hello Chris Rock-Will Smith till eternity. pic.twitter.com/ZPGQ3OSaPj — Äamir Bakshi (@Madred1988) March 28, 2022

pic.twitter.com/42InV7wSYN — Evil Robot (@1HighDefRazjah) March 28, 2022

Will Smith is Batman? #TheOscarspic.twitter.com/nzJtPpbU0R — NunSiriJuiceGaming (@NunSiriJuice) March 28, 2022

The incident also triggered other memes, including Nicole Kidman and Lupita Nyong'o's reactions.

All of us just now… We are all Lupita That joke wasn’t even funny. #whatjusthappenedpic.twitter.com/3r33XiMKEv#oscars22#willsmithpic.twitter.com/3r33XiMKEv

— Lilliam Uribe (@LilliamUribe) March 28, 2022

Nicole Kidman reacting to the Chris Rock and Will Smith incident at the pic.twitter.com/3r33XiMKEv . A NEW MEME IS BORN. pic.twitter.com/X19AE19OUv — Mauli Adam (@mauli_adam) March 28, 2022

Monday morning scenes be like : pic.twitter.com/vStlv02GST

— Yashika (@thatjollygirl_) March 28, 2022

Actor Will Smith stunned audiences across the globe during Oscars 2022 when he walked up to the stage and slapped comedian and fellow actor Chris Rock who cracked a joke on Smith’s wife and actor Jada Pinkett Smith.

Rock was on the Academy Award stage presenting the category for best documentary. He began by making a few jokes including one on Pinkett Smith, referring to her as “G.I. Jane” due to her closely cropped hair.

Read more: Oscars 2022 viral moment: When Will Smith smacked Chris Rock. What exactly happened

As the camera panned on to the Smiths seated in the audience, Will Smith appeared unaffected initially but Jada Pinkett Smith's face dropped.

As Rock moved on with his presentation, Will Smith walked to the stage and slapped him across the face.

Read more: Video: Will Smith punches Chris Rock on Oscars stage after Jada Pinkett Smith joke

After the award ceremony, the Academy released a statement on the incident. "The Academy does not condone violence of any form. Tonight we are delighted to celebrate our 94th Academy Awards winners, who deserve this moment of recognition from their peers and movie lovers around the world," it stated.