Will Smith "deserves a second chance," according to Vivica A. Fox, who hasn't spoken to Jada Pinkett Smith since criticizing her comments about his punching Chris Rock at the Oscars.
Fox responded to Jada's Red Table Talk comments about moving past the March 27 incident while she was on The Wendy Williams Show in June with a sobbing outburst. Fox, who starred alongside Will in Independence Day in 1996 and alongside Jada in Set It Off in the same year, expressed her feelings at the time, saying in part, "I just hoped we may have a little more responsibility and for it to not really seem self-righteous on Jada's part, and that's my emotions."
Fox, 58, admitted to PEOPLE that she hasn't spoken to Jada, 50, since coming out at the Great Wolf Lodge premiere of The Great Wolf Pack: A Call to Adventure on Tuesday in Garden Grove, California.
She believes that they are currently through a season of healing. "Hear me out—I adore Will Smith. He is among my favorite individuals on earth. Everyone makes errors. He is the one who most merits a second chance if anyone. I believe he has expressed regret and accepted full responsibility for his actions."
Fox continues, "I just hope that we can all learn from the tragedy and realize that it must never occur again, particularly on a platform of that scale."
During the Oscars, Will, 53, went on stage and hit Rock, 57, for making a comment about Jada's bald head that night since she has alopecia. Following an apology and resignation from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Best Actor winner was also barred from the organization's functions for ten years.
In a Red Table Speak episode where she addressed the issue, Jada said, "My deepest desire is that these two brilliant, competent men have the chance to heal, talk this out, and reunite.