American comedian Chris Rock said he was offered to host the 2023 Academy Awards but he refused, a report said Monday.

According to an article by The Arizona Republic, Rock told the audience at his show in Phoenix that returning to the Oscars felt like going back to the scene of the crime.

Rock also said the hit from Smith hurt.

“He’s bigger than me,” he said. “The state of Nevada would not sanction a fight between me and Will Smith.”

Smith slapped Rock with an open hand and shouted an expletive at the comedian for making a joke about the shaved head of Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith in an epic moment overshadowing the Oscars ceremony.

Rock was apparently unaware that she has alopecia, which causes sudden hair loss.

• Will Smith smacks Chris Rock on stage at Oscars, drops F-bomb

Later in the show, while accepting his first Oscar for best actor for his role in "King Richard," Smith apologized to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and his fellow nominees in a tear-filled acceptance speech -- but not to Rock.

Smith's apology to Rock came a day later, posting on Instagram that his behavior was "unacceptable and inexcusable."

"I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris," Smith wrote. "I was out of line and I was wrong."

• Will Smith apologizes to Chris Rock for slap, academy weighs action

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