Jimmy Kimmel says Chris Rock 'should be proud of' his reaction to Will Smith Oscars slap

As he preps to host this year's Oscars, Jimmy Kimmel says he's still not over what happened at the last Oscars.

He's referring, of course, to the slap heard 'round the world when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock across the face onstage and on live television after Rock made a joke about the appearance of Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. (Smith later issued an apology to Rock, calling his behavior "unacceptable and inexcusable.")

"It's still shocking that that happened," Kimmel, who was watching from home at the time, told PEOPLE. "To see something like that happen outside of like The Maury Povich Show is shocking. And then for it to happen on the Oscars magnifies it by about a million times…. I think it's something that everybody regrets and that we will move past. One day it will be looked at in the same way as that guy running onstage naked is looked at: a weird moment that we all talked about and we hopefully learn from."

The television host told the outlet that he has not spoken to Smith but did reach out to Rock, whom he commended for his reaction on stage after the incident. "I mean, to be slapped in the face and to stay that cool is something that Chris should be proud of," he said. "Chris's grandchildren, I hope, will still be proud of that when he's dead and gone."

For his part, though he's addressed the slap briefly in the past year, Rock plans to spend more time talking about it in his upcoming Netflix comedy special, which is taking place a week before this year's Academy Awards. Chris Rock: Selective Outrage will stream live on Netflix at 10 p.m. ET from the Hippodrome Theatre in Baltimore on Saturday.

Kimmel will return to host the Oscars for a third time when they air live on ABC on Sunday, March 12, at 8 p.m. ET.

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