“I’ve done worse than Will”: Terry Crews Revealed His Dark Past That’s Way Worse Than Will Smith, but Credits Chris Rock for Saving Hollywood

SUMMARY

• Fans absolutely adore Terry Crews, being the intimidating teddy bear of the film industry.
• However, many may be surprised to know that it had some very dark years.
• The actor once compared himself to Will Smith during slapgate.

Terry Crews is known as Hollywood’s sweetheart. Most fans know him for his role as Terry Jeffords in Brooklyn 99, however, he has been a cherished part of the film industry for decades. He has been in everything from adult comedy films to animated projects, becoming the icon that he is today. On top of his intimidating physique, the actor also gets quite vulnerable with his fans, sharing some of his darkest moments with them.

Terry Crews in Brooklyn 99 | Credit: Fox

With this, many may be surprised to know that the actor had a dark side a long time ago. In fact, he once compared himself to Will Smith when the Oscar-winning actor had one of his darkest moments.

Terry Crews drew parallels between him and Will Smith.

One of the most culturally significant moments for Will Smith happened to him at the Oscars, and it was not because of an award he won. During the 2022 Oscars, the actor got on stage and slapped the comedian Chris Rock over a joke in front of the finest from the industry and the entire world. The moment became many things, ranging from a meme to one of the most controversial and public mishaps that an actor did.

Will Smith as Christopher Gardner in Pursuit of Happyness | Credit: Sony Entertainment

During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Terry Crews compared his past to what happened between Smith and Rock. He started by saying that he was very close friends with both involved in the situation. At the same time, he confessed that he had some very dark moments years ago, where he would find himself in the shoes of Smith.

Both Will Smith and Chris Rock are dear, dear friends of mine. I love them both as brothers, but there was a time in my life [where] I was Will Smith at that moment and let me tell you, I’ve done worse than Will — way overkill, just … the punishment did not fit the crime.

In fact, the actor revealed that he had done things much worse than Smith that he was very ashamed about. Going into some detail about it, he mentioned that there were moments when he used his physical advantages in the wrong way and ended up in some very tough spots.

Like people were like, ‘What in the world are you doing?’ My wife even had to be like, ‘You got to promise me you will never go off like this. You did not need to pick this man up and put him on his head, on the concrete,’

Terry Crews in The Expendables | Credit: Lionsgate Films

He took an example, confessing that his wife once had to tell him that he was going overboard and told him to never do something like that again. It is safe to say that anyone who knows the actor would be surprised to know that he had such a side to him.

Terry Crews commends Chris Rock for the way he acted when he got slapped

Further in the interview, Terry Crews talked about the type of morals that he was raised on and the kind of things that he was taught. He mentioned that he was taught that being tough meant the physicality of a person. However, as he has grown up, he has learned that the truth is quite the opposite.

Chris Rock | Credit: Oscars/YT

After Will Smith slapped him, Chris Rock was commended for the way that he reacted, choosing to stand his ground and not resort to the same methods that Smith used. With this, Crews mentioned that he learned that true toughness lay in the kind of reaction that Rock had.

The toughness where I grew up and the way I was, it was always the ability to strike, the ability to punch, the ability to set things straight, to even the score. But the true definition of toughness was what Chris did in taking a punch and then holding everything together and then showing tremendous endurance and resilience in the middle of obstacles.

He spoke nothing but praise of Rock, mentioning that being able to keep a level head when put in front of such a blaring obstacle requires a lot of strength. He even added there is a lot to be learned from the way that the comedian reacted.

I’m very thankful to Chris, but also I understand Will. I’m not [one] to demonize Will at all because I was there.

Terry Crews in Brooklyn 99 | Credit: Fox

However, then Crews switched and mentioned that although he is very appreciative of Rock, he understands Smith’s perspective as well, having been in his shoes many times. It is safe to say that this brings a lot more insight into the kind of person Crews is.

Written by Ananya Godboley

Articles Published: 1815

A poet and art enthusiast, Ananya Godboley is a striving academic who is pursuing a career in Criminal Psychology, currently doing an undergrad degree in Psychology. Passionate about History, Philosophy and Literature, she loves to learn about new and interesting subjects. A writer for FandomWire with over 1700 published articles, she adores all things superhero and Taylor Swift.