There is not a person on the planet who has not seen a movie starring Will Smith. Throughout his career, there have been films that critics recognized as one of the best in cinematography, as well as those that have proven to be a disappointment. However, he wasn’t always an actor, and if it hadn’t been for an incident, no one would have known about his work or realized the full extent of his talent. Find out more at philadelphianka.
Early years
Willard Carroll Smith Jr. was born on September 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He grew up in the Wynnefield neighborhood in the West. Smith’s family was not wealthy, his mother taught at a school, and his father was a US Air Force veteran who later worked as a refrigeration engineer. Yet, according to Will, the family had an average income, which allowed the children to get an education and grow up safely. Will Smith was the second of four children, including twins Harry and Ellen and sister Pam. The future actor was raised in the Baptist faith. The parents were happily married, but when the boy was 13 years old, the strong marriage ended. However, this incident did not affect the child much, as he continued to study and pursue his hobby.
Smith received his education first at the private Catholic elementary school Our Lady of Lourdes and later moved on to secondary school. He was not the best student, he was rather mediocre. He had no challenges at school, though. Smith has always benefited from his personality, appearance and sense of humor. He was capable of convincing anyone in anything. As a result, everyone liked and respected the boy, both teachers and classmates. It was at school that Will Smith was given the nickname Prince, which he eventually changed the Fresh Prince and used in his future career.
Career as a rap artist
As a teenager, Smith grew interested in rap, and at the age of 12, he started to rap. Initially, he performed at school parties with friends, but subsequently, together with childhood friend Jeff Townes, they formed the group DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, which was later joined by Clarence Holmes. One day, Smith’s grandmother found his diary, where he had written down the words to his future songs, which contained a lot of crude language. When she saw the notes, she wrote him a letter in his notebook, telling him that truly intelligent people should not use such rude language for self-expression. She asked him to prove to the world that he was as intelligent as his family thought he was. The comment motivated Smith and affected his future career, as he decided not to use profanity in his work.
The band started to gain popularity among teenagers. They were well-known for their lighthearted lyrics that conveyed the story in battle rhymes, even though the texts lacked the typical abusive language. Will Smith and his friends performed humorous sketches seasoning them with rap, which many liked.
In 1986, the band released their debut single through Word Records. In 1988, they were awarded a Grammy for their work. Songs performed by Smith and his friends became more popular every day, and later their single became a well-known hit. This all occurred a month before Will’s graduation from school. The band became quite popular, bringing Smith a decent income, so he declined the college scholarship offered to him. Later, they were noticed again, but this time by a different label, Jive Records, and Russell Simmons, which provided them a new boost in their career. 1989 was another successful year for the band, as they won their second Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance for the track “Parents Just Don’t Understand”.
Will Smith, like any other child from a poor family, began to spend money irresponsibly. It continued this way from 1988 to 1989. However, the worst thing that happened was that the individual did not pay the taxes. As a result, the tax office paid him a visit and charged him with a debt of 2.8 million, while also confiscating a large portion of his property and seizing his income. Fortunately, he received such an experience at a young age since he later realized that you must pay for everything rather than simply enjoying a wealthy life. Smith was lucky, however, and he was not left without funds.
Acting career
Will faced a difficult period in his life, which may have lasted even longer if not for the NBC television network. They noticed the charismatic young man and gave him a role in a new show. Smith had no idea that signing this contract would radically change his life for the better. So, Will made his television debut not as a rap star, but as an actor in the sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”. He played a teenager whose personality was remarkably similar to Smith himself. The sitcom became extremely popular with the American audience, making his persona more recognized. This project is considered the starting point of Smith’s acting career. However, the series was canceled in 1966, forcing the actor to return to rap, this time as a solo performer. Following a successful start on television, Smith has set himself the goal of becoming one of the biggest movie stars in the world.
In 1989, Will was charged with a crime and arrested. It was allegedly due to an assault on his promoter, William Hendricks. However, the scandal eventually subsided, the charges were dropped and the actor continued to work on his image on stage and in cinema.
Smith’s first big feature following the cancellation of the sitcom was “Six Degrees of Separation,” but many people remember him for “Bad Boys,” in which he co-starred with Martin Lawrence. The picture received controversial reviews, but despite this, it grossed 141.4 million dollars worldwide, indicating that many people like it. Following these projects, Will Smith became a well-known actor who was asked to do larger productions. His next work was the fantastic film “Independence Day”. In this film, he played a fighter pilot who enters the battle against aliens. This project demonstrated that Will Smith is more than just a good comedian, he can also incredibly bring dramatic characters to life.
Every year, his roles and films grow better and more timeless. This list of movies includes all the parts of “Men in Black,” “I Robot,” “I Am Legend,” “Hitch” and others. However, every actor has a role for which he receives international acclaim and achieves ultimate stardom. For Smith, it was the film “Ali,” in which he portrayed American boxer Muhammad Ali. For this role, the actor was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor as well as a Golden Globe for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, however, he did not win either. Later, he received another nomination for his performance in “The Pursuit of Happiness,” in which he appeared with his son. These works made Will Smith a world-class star and also secured his status as the highest-paid actor in Hollywood.
Role rejection and unsuccessful films
In the 1990s, Will Smith became quite a popular figure. As a result, a number of directors expressed interest in working with him. One of them were the Wachowskis brothers, who offered the actor the role of Neo in “The Matrix”. But Smith declines the offer. Instead, he chose the film “Wild Wild West,” which performed poorly at the box office but its soundtrack, produced by Smith, topped the US charts. The actor was asked if he was sorry for turning down such a potential and later well-known role. His response was simple: no, since he believes Keanu Reeves did a fantastic job, and Smith would never have accomplished what his colleague did.
“Wild Wild West” was not the only actor’s movie that failed at the box office and received negative reviews from critics. One of them was “After Earth,” a film in which he starred alongside his son Jaden. It was a huge disappointment, and subsequently, the actor took a break from work for 1.5 years.
The Chris Rock scandal
On March 27, 2022, the 94th Academy Awards ceremony took place. Will Smith was there, of course. That day, he heard insulting remarks made about his wife on stage. The host, Chris Rock, commented on Jada’s appearance, joking that she resembles the protagonist from the film “G.I. Jane”. At that point, the woman discovered she had alopecia. This condition causes hair loss, which is why Jada chose to shave her head. This joke offended Smith, so he ran onto the stage and slapped the host in the face. Eventually, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences carried out an investigation. Will Smith apologized for the incident, saying he was sorry for causing inconvenience to the guests of the ceremony. But he did not apologize to Rock. At this ceremony, however, Smith at last won the Oscar for Best Actor, the Golden Globe for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role. All of this was made possible thanks to the movie “King Richard.”
Will Smith is an extraordinarily talented man who rose to prominence through hard work. He understood that you cannot achieve your goals unless you put forth the necessary effort. He also set an example for others when he switched from music to cinematography, and many rappers followed suit and became actors as well.