The 2022 Oscars telecast was one of the most memorable ones in recent Academy Awards history, not because of the movies represented or the host or any of the other things that make up such a broadcast. Instead, it was because of the actions of one man who was there to celebrate a nomination and ended up derailing his career seriously enough that, to date, it still hasn’t fully recovered. On the night of the broadcast, Chris Rock took the stage, made a tasteless joke at the expense of Jada Pinkett Smith, and Will Smith approached him and slapped him on live TV. He then proceeded to cuss him out. Later that same evening, Will won the Best Actor Oscar and had to come up on stage again, this time trying to perform some damage control and apologize for his earlier actions. His acceptance speech felt remorseful and sincere, but the damage was done.
Will Smith was kicked out of the Academy, a sentence set for ten years, and his career hit some major speed bumps in the aftermath, including studios backing out of projects he was involved in. Fans speculated that the incident was staged, but the consequences say otherwise. Chris Rock has addressed the incident in his stand-up routines, and Will has poked fun at himself in a few of his subsequent roles, trying to move past the “slap heard around the world”. I bring all of this up because there is a feeling amongst certain groups of people that the film King Richard is tainted because of the actions of Will Smith at the Oscars that day. I don’t share that feeling. Whatever I may think of Will Smith as a person and what he did, it doesn’t affect how I see his performance or the film tied to it.
To call King Richard a tennis movie is to grossly undersell it as a film. It is a biographical drama that just happens to be about two of the greatest tennis players in modern history. It is titled King Richardbecause, even though Venus and Serena Williams are the players the whole world has heard about, this film is more about the man, their father Richard Williams (Will Smith), who was the driving force behind their careers and the moral compass that tried to shield them from the darker elements of success.
To understand some of the odd, and controversial, decisions he made in the early parts of his daughters’ careers, you have to understand the man himself. That is where this film excels. We get a good look at the world in which he exists and understand the drive he had to make a better life for his children. We also see the ego he had and its downside. This is a man who underappreciates the others around him and what they are bringing to the table. This leads to more than one moment where someone has to call him out for his own attitude and stubbornness.
It takes a tremendously charismatic actor to bring a character like this to life without making him unlikable. It’s also far too easy to write such a character as being just another helicopter parent; there are plenty of those on display in the film. But Richard is far more than just that. He is driven to bring success to his daughters, filling them with praise but also emphasizing humility and the need to have fun. He doesn’t like it when he sees pride in them, to the point that he becomes a killjoy when they win their first tennis junior’s tournament. He sees it as being boastful and celebrating the opponents’ defeats whereas his wife, Oracene (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) doesn’t want him to be taking away their happiness for winning.
He also fears that if he pushes them into the spotlight too soon, it will lead to too much pressure, something he sees happening to other young pro-tennis players in the news. One in particular was recently arrested for drug possession, something he fears could happen to his girls. He was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, but raised his family in Compton, an area of California rife with gang violence, unwed mothers, and lots of drugs. He is determined to make a better life for his girls than that, almost to a fault.
The film covers a number of years, following Richard as he takes his girls out in an attempt to find a professional coach willing to train them in exchange for future royalties when they go pro, something he has planned for them since the day they were born. This eventually works when they impress Paul Cohen (Tony Goldwyn), who works with such pros as John McEnroe and Pete Sampras. Paul is willing to coach for free but only one of the girls, not both. This leads to Venus (Saniyya Sidney) being selected with Richard taping the lessons so he can train Serena (Demi Singleton) himself. Things go well for a while under Paul’s tutelage, though the two men clash over certain aspects of the training. This partnership comes to an end, though, when Richard decided he doesn’t want his daughters competing anymore in the juniors tournaments, only practicing until he feels they are ready to go pro.
Richard eventually contacts Rick Macci (Jon Bernthal), who agrees to take over their training, moving the whole family out to Florida to his facilities. This only happens because Richard leaves him in the dark initially about his plans to not have them compete until they are ready for the pros. By the time Rick finds out, contracts have been signed. After several years, Richard, cornered by his wife, Rick, and a frustrated Venus, is finally convinced to let her enter a professional circuit. Serena, who is just as determined, is promised that her turn is next and she will be the greatest tennis player in the world.
You don’t have to be into professional tennis to have heard of Venus and Serena Williams. I have never watched pro tennis nor do I follow the sport, yet I, like most everyone in the world, know who these two women are. There is no denying that what Richard did for them created two very determined women who were strong-willed and very skilled on the court. Their story, though, was unknown to me, and that is where this film really soared. It taught me about what it was like in their youth and how they turned talent and determination into a lucrative career. Not everything in the movie is factual—it is a drama after all—but enough is that you get a good idea of the story behind these two girls. Both Serena and Venus have gone on record that this film is about as accurate to the true history as you can get in a dramatized film.
You also get a good sense of what motivates all of them. The film actually shows you the rough environment they grew up in, including a drive-by shooting and hoodlums on the streets. In one memorable moment, Richard tries to stand up to some of them only to get attacked, beaten to the ground by multiple assailants. This is not an ideal environment to be raising a family, let alone one with such lofty aspirations. But greatness can come from anywhere and their story is just more proof of this.
Perhaps the greatest thing this film does is demonstrate many times how much Richard loves his children. This is juxtaposed with other driven parents who berate their children when they do not succeed. He has his faults, many of them even, but you never question his devotion to his daughters. I don’t know the man personally, and I don’t have inside knowledge on whether he was really like this, but Venus and Serena served as executive producers on the film, which says a lot for how they feel their father was portrayed on screen.
Despite all the drama after the fact, this film doesn’t deserve to be branded for the actions Will Smith took part in during the Oscars that year. He is perfectly cast in this film and deserved the award he took home for it. The timing has tarnished that win, but this and his subsequent banishment from the Academy shouldn’t reflect on the film itself any more than any performances actors like Kevin Spacey or Armie Hammer gave leading up to their falls from grace should tarnish those movies. The film stands on its own and shouldn’t be judged by any other factors. Whether you like, or even understand, the nuances of tennis, this film works either way. It’s first and foremost a drama about family, courage, and determination. It also happens to be an inspiring true story, one that virtually anyone can appreciate on the many levels it is operating on. This is a deep, rich film with some wonderful performances surrounding a masterful script that never gets bogged down in genre clichés or the obvious plot points. Quite simply, it’s a beautiful film all around.
Academy Award Nominations:
Best Picture: Tim White, Trevor White, and Will Smith
Best Actor: Will Smith (won)
Best Supporting Actress: Aunjanue Ellis
Best Original Screenplay: Zach Baylin
Best Film Editing: Pamela Martin
Best Original Song: “Be Alive” Music and lyrics by DIXSON and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter
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Release Date: November 19, 2021
Running Time: 145 minutes
Rated PG-13
Starring: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, and Jon Bernthal
Directed by: Reinaldo Marcus Green
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