Two nights after a man attacked Dave Chappelle on stage during his set at the "Netflix is a Joke" comedy festival in Los Angeles, Chris Rock joked with the comedian by saying he got slapped by the "softest" person "that ever rapped," according to a report from The Hollywood Reporter.
Rock joined Chappelle on stage at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles on Thursday, two nights after Chappelle had his set interrupted at the Hollywood Bowl, THR senior writer Seth Abramovich, who was at the show, reported.
"At least you got smacked by someone of repute!" Chappelle said to Rock, THR reported. "I got smacked by a homeless guy with leaves in his hair."
Rock, who was also at Chappelle's interrupted Hollywood Bowl set on Tuesday, responded: "I got smacked by the softest n---- that ever rapped," THR reported.
Rock was referring to the moment when Will Smith got on stage at the Oscars and slapped him after the comedian made a joke about the actor's wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith.
According to THR's report, Chappelle told the crowd Thursday night that he convinced Hollywood Bowl security to let him talk to the man accused of rushing the stage and ramming into him.
THR reported that Chappelle said they spoke about what could have prompted the attack, and the suspect, who police identified as 23-year-old Isaiah Lee, told him a story about his grandmother who he said was forced out of her New York neighborhood because of gentrification.
Chappelle told the crowd that the suspect told him rushing the stage was meant to draw attention to her difficult situation, THR reported. Chappelle said he and the suspect also spoke about the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial and the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision.
LA City Attorney Mike Feuer said on Thursday that his office filed four misdemeanor charges against Lee, including battery, possession of a weapon with the intent to assault, and charges connected to interfering with a performance.
NBC 4 reported on Friday that Lee pleaded not guilty and that his bond was set at $30,000.
Previously, Rock refused to comment on the incident without the promise of a paycheck.
"I'm OK, I have a whole show, and I'm not talking about that until I get paid," he said, according to the Palm Springs Desert Sun. "Life is good. I got my hearing back."
Still, Rock's family members including his brother, comedian Tony Rock, and his mother, Rose Rock, have spoken out about the incident. Tony Rock said last month that he would 'pop' if Smith ran up onstage while he was performing comedy, while Rose Rock said Smith's actions affected their entire family.
"When he slapped Chris, he slapped all of us," she told WIS-TV. "He really slapped me."
She also pointed out how Smith overshadowed the presentation of the Academy Award for best documentary feature to Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson for "Summer of Soul."
"No one even heard his speech. No one was able to just be in the moment because everyone was sitting there like, 'what just happened,'" she added.