Chris Rock has shared details of an uncomfortable encounter with actor Jude Law following Rock's 2005 Oscars opening monologue, during which he joked about Law's prolific acting career.
Rock, who hosted the Academy Awards for the first time in 2005, told Variety in a recent interview that he and Law, now 53, are on good terms now, but their interaction shortly after the ceremony was tense.
“We’re fine now,” Rock, 61, told the outlet. “But I remember bumping into him early after that, and he was definitely not having it.”
Rock recalled crossing paths with Law at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. He described the actor as being unreceptive to him, with Courtney Love also present during the encounter.
In his 2005 monologue, Rock had quipped about Law's frequent casting, mentioning his roles in films like “Cold Mountain,” “I Heart Huckabees,” “Alfie,” “Closer,” “The Aviator,” “Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow,” and “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.” Rock questioned Law's ubiquity, joking, “You want Tom Cruise and all you can get is Jude Law? … Who is Jude Law? Why is he in every movie I have seen the last four years? He’s in everything. Even the movies he’s not acting in. If you look at the credits, he made cupcakes or something.”
Law later addressed Rock's joke in a September 2006 interview with The New York Times. He stated that he initially laughed but became angry as the remarks felt personal. Law's friends were reportedly upset, and he felt Rock had crossed a line.
"As a celebrity I know I’m fair game for a lot of things that I don’t like, but Rock crossed the line when he made his point and got his laugh then seemingly wouldn’t stop," Law told the Times. “It’s very unfortunate that I had five or six films come out at the same time.”
Law also offered a subtle critique of the Academy's hosting choices, implying that if they couldn't secure a bigger name, they should wait, referencing Billy Crystal as a benchmark.
Rock returned to host the Oscars in 2016, but has expressed he has no plans to host again unless nominated for an award. He has not attended the ceremony since 2022, when he was involved in an altercation with Will Smith. He told Variety that he is not expecting to be nominated and is content with that.