Late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel has responded to Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene‘s accusation that a joke told on Kimmel’s show was a “threat of violence.”
On Wednesday night’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live, the comedian spoke about a tweet from Greene that accused other Republican senators of being “pro-pedophile” for supporting the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.
“Wow, where is Will Smith when you really need him?” Kimmel, 54, joked, referring to the now-infamous Oscars slap.
The Oscars slap occurred between Smith and comedian Chris Rock during the Oscars broadcast on March 27 when Rock made a G.I. Jane joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
Smith walked onto the stage from his front-row seat and took a swing at Rock with an open palm, generating a loud smack. Smith returned to his seat and shouted for Rock to “Keep my wife’s name out of your f–king mouth!”
After the broadcast of Jimmy Kimmel Live, Greene took to Twitter, calling Kimmel’s words a “threat of violence” against her. She claimed to have filed a police report with Capitol Police.
Kimmel later responded, again sharing the video clip of the joke, tweeting: “Officer? I’d like to report a joke.”
Capitol Police said in a statement that “Our office takes all threats of violence towards the Congresswoman very seriously. Last night, Jimmy Kimmel called for violence to be committed against Congresswoman Greene. It will not be tolerated.”
Greene has also commented on the Smith-Rock slap in the past, writing on Twitter that Smith was an “Alpha male” for “defending his wife.”
It is unclear what action, if any, will result from Greene’s Capitol Police complaint against Kimmel.
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