INDIANAPOLIS — When Corey Duncan Sr. and his 16-year old son, Corey Jr., tuned in to watch the Oscars, they never thought they would see an altercation happen live on stage.
At the 94th Academy Awards, actor Will Smith walked on stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock in the face.
Before winning his Oscar for "King Richard," Smith got upset about a joke Chris Rock told about his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, who suffers from alopecia.
"Initially, we thought maybe it was a skit and maybe a part of the show, but upon the reactions, we found out that was definitely not the case, and so we're really just trying to process and digest what happened in front of the whole world," said Duncan Sr.
Duncan Sr. said he and his son talked about what happened.
"We talked about if he was standing up for his wife, and if the way he handled it was wrong. There's a lot of variables involved," said Duncan Sr.
"We talked about defending your wife, or if you are a man, the importance of fighting for her honor, looking at it from that viewpoint," said Duncan Jr., a sophomore at Warren Central High School.
Duncan Sr. is a senior pastor at City of Hope Church on the east side of Indianapolis. He said they looked at multiple layers, like when it is appropriate to defend and fight for your wife.
"One of the things I wanted to press upon my son is, I always say, 'You have to platform responsibly.' So, when you have power, when you have a platform, when you have prestige, you have to make sure you platform responsibly," said Duncan Sr.
He went on to say he wants his son to learn the importance of character and conduct.
Duncan Jr. took what happened as a lesson.
"Let's say I get into that kind of situation, how would I respond and to remember my values and what I think is wrong and what I think is right. He tells me stuff like this all the time and we always have these talks, so I'm just trying to absorb as much knowledge and wisdom as I can," said Duncan Jr.
The Duncans said what happened opened up a larger conversation.
"It really does open up the door and gives us an opportunity to have meaningful dialogue, to have meaningful conversations about managing your emotions. How do you manage your emotions whether you're an adult, whether you're a child? How do you handle situations and circumstances such as these, are very important," said Duncan Sr.
His son agrees.
"I remember always having talks about managing my emotions if there is something that happens at school and somebody makes me mad, how would I handle the situation. He'll tell, 'Just maintain your poise and just keep calm. Take all that anger and think about what you're about to do,'" said Duncan Jr.