Will and Jada Smith’s charitable foundation is shutting down permanently due to low donations.
The drop in donations reportedly happened after Will’s infamous Oscar’s slap.
The Will & Jada Smith Family Foundation was founded in 1996 and aimed to improve lives by creating and extending opportunities to “unheard voices.” The foundation donated grants to organizations and individuals that reflected its principles, from health to education.
But the foundation took a detrimental hit following the backlash Will received for slapping comedian Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars for a joke aimed at his wife, Jada.
Tax records the outlet reviewed from ProPublica showed the foundation’s revenue decreased from $1,760,000 in 2020 and $3,138,660 in 2021 to $365,870 in 2022—an 83% drop.
WJSFF lost donations from major contributors like American Airlines, which donated $76,160 in 2021, and CAA, which bestowed $100.000 in 2021.
A source close to WJSFF explained to the outlet that the foundation was ending before the Oscars slap, but it’s focused solely on donating privately to charitable causes. The source also said that the decline in staffing drove the family’s decision to move away from the organization.
According to WJSFF’s December 2022 tax records, the foundation donated to education institutions and medical organizations like the American Film Institute ($30,000), Lupus Foundation of America ($10,000), Little Miss African American ($10,000), The Rape Foundation ($25,000), Simmons Museum of Negro League Baseball Inc. ($550) and more.
Tax records, such as office equipment and computers, also show the foundation’s expenditures. They also had $3,304 in bank overdrawn fees.
The site claims the foundation donated “millions of dollars and invaluable resources to accelerate the growth of initiatives that focus on deepening individual and collective empowerment.”
WJSFF’s social media accounts haven’t been recently active this year. The last post on its Instagram account promoted Jaden Smith’s charitable food truck restaurant, I Love You, an organization that aspired to make vegan food accessible to the Skid Row community of Downtown Los Angeles.
In December 2022, Jaden took the food truck to a Skid Row neighborhood and distributed meals to people experiencing homelessness.
The foundation’s Facebook page was last updated in June 2023, and the website had an updated 2024 copyright notice at the bottom.
Despite receiving much flak for slapping Rock, Will continued his acting career with the release of his 2022 action thriller, Emancipated. Will is working on the sequel Bad Boys 4 and Netflix’s Fast and Loose.
