The daily gossip: Will Smith recalls thinking he could get away with murdering his father, Joe Exotic reveals cancer diagnosis, and more

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Will Smith.
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1. Will Smith recalls thinking he could kill his father and get away with it

Will Smith is opening up about his relationship with his late father, revealing he once thought about killing him to "avenge my mother." In his upcoming book Will, the actor writes that his father, who died in 2016, was an alcoholic who violently abused his mother. Smith recalls thinking, while his father was suffering from cancer, that he could "shove him down" the stairs and "easily get away with it," writing, "I'm Will Smith. No one would ever believe I killed my father on purpose. I'm one of the best actors in the world. My 911 call would be Academy Award level." But Smith adds that "as the decades of pain, anger, and resentment coursed then receded, I shook my head and proceeded to wheel Daddio to the bathroom." Smith previously spoke with GQ about his decision to discuss his father's abuse in his book, noting he and his mother never previously talked about it. "It was really cathartic in a way," he said, but "it was a brutal couple of weeks, man. It was brutal."

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.