Will Packer, the Oscars’ producer, recently talked out about the aftermath of the Will Smith-Chris Rock slapping incident. Packer stated to Good Morning America that the LAPD was about to arrest Smith on “battery” charges before Rock declined to file charges. He stated:
“They were saying, “You know, this is battery,” which was the phrase they were using at the time. They said we’d go get him; we’re ready. We’re ready to take him right now. You may file charges. We can detain him.”
He went on:
“They were discussing the various choices, and Chris seemed disdainful of each as they spoke. ‘No, I’m alright,’ he said. ‘No, no, no,’ he said.”
The LAPD previously said that “the person involved [Chris Rock] has refused to file a police complaint.” At the 94th Academy Awards, Packer led the first all-Black production crew. He subsequently told GMA that after slapping Rock for making a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, he did not talk to Smith directly.
Everything You Need to Know About Will Packer
Will Packer is one of Hollywood’s most well-known directors. Will Packer Productions and Will Packer Media are both founded and run by him. The producer was born on April 11, 1974, in St. Petersburg, Florida, and grew up there. He attended Florida A&M University after graduating from St. Petersburg High School in 1991. Packer earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering magna cum laude in 1996. During his time at university, he began filming with Rob Hardy and interned with producer Warrington Hudlin.
Following graduation, the pair established Rainforest Films in Atlanta. Among the films produced by the group are Trois, Trois: The Escort, Motives, Lockdown, The Gospel, and This Christmas. Packer’s Rainforest Films has produced five top-rated films, including Think Like A Man, Ride Along, Stomp The Yard, Obsessed, and Takers. Will Packer Productions was created in 2013, a year before Rainforest Films was disbanded.
Packer has produced record-breaking films such as Girls Trip and Night School, as well as #1 pictures such as No Good Deed and What Men Want, among others, under his own label. He was also an executive producer on Straight Outta Compton and the Roots television miniseries. The Photograph, his most recent picture, will be released in February 2020. In 2017, Packer also established Will Packer Media, a television, internet, and branded content firm. Ambitions, Ready To Love, The Baxters, Powerstar Live, Truth Be Told, Uncle Buck, Being Mary Jane, and the Emmy-nominated Roots remake are among the projects under the umbrella.
Recent projects include Blackballed, Atlanta Child Murderers, The Disappearance of the Millbrook Twins, and Shark Trip: Eat. Prey. Chum. On October 29, 2021, Florida A&M University will rename its amphitheater the Will Packer Amphitheater in his honor. He was also selected as the 94th Annual Academy Awards producer. In July 2001, Packer married his first wife, Nina Packer. Nija and Maya are their two daughters. They split up in February 2009. After that, he began dating Heather Hayslett and proposed to her on stage at the 2013 Essence Music Festival. In August 2015, the couple married in Georgia.
