Will Smith is an extremely popular American actor, who began his career as a rap artist, teaming up with turntabler DJ Jazzy Jeff and beat-boxer Ready Rock C. He was known to be a bright student hailing from the Philadelphia’s ‘Overbrook High School’, who decided against attending college so that he could pursue a career in music. He was successful as a singer and is also a “Grammy Award” recipient. At the age of 25, this young man ventured into movies, and debuted with the famous movie ‘Six Degree of Separation’. From then on, there was no looking back for this talented young star. With blockbuster movies like “Independence Day”, ‘I, Robot’, ‘I Am Legend,’ ‘Enemy of the State’, ‘The Pursuit of Happyness,’ ‘Ali’, and ‘King Richard,’ Will Smith has won several awards and accolades, including an ‘Academy Award,’ a ‘Critics’ Choice Movie Award,’ a ‘British Academy Film Award,’ a ‘Screen Actors Guild Award,’ four ‘Grammy Awards’ and a ‘Golden Globe Award.’ His power-packed performances show versatility and promise that this star is here to stay. In the opinion of many directors, the actor was like a breath of fresh air and essayed emotional roles with as much ease as he would portray an action hero. Amongst his several brilliant films, ‘Men in Black’ a sci-fi comedy, was one movie that became a roaring hit with moviegoers all over the world. The popularity of the first movie inspired the sequels in the ‘Men in Black’ series, which were lauded by fans and critics alike.
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Family And Early Life of Will Smith
His full name is Williard Carroll Smith Jr. and he was born on September 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is an American actor and musician whose charisma and quick wit helped him transition from rap music to a successful career in acting. His mother Caroline was a school board administrator and his father Willard was a U.S. Air Force Veteran and refrigeration engineer. Will has an elder sister named Pamela and two younger siblings, twins Harry and Ellen. His parents split when he was 13 and officially divorced in 2000.
He was raised Baptist. His parents got separated when he was 13 and divorced when he was 32. He attended Overbrook High School in West Philadelphia for the majority of his high school years. However, he also spent a short time attending Archbishop John Carroll High School in Radnor. While it is widely reported that Smith turned down a scholarship to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he never applied to MIT, although he was admitted to a “pre-engineering program” there.
Recording And Acting Career
Smith was given the nickname “Prince Charming” in high school, which he adapted to “Fresh Prince” in order to reflect a more hip-hop sound when he began his musical career. He formed an alliance with schoolmate and deejay Jeffrey Townes, whom he met in 1981. They began recording as DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince and released their first single, “Girls Ain’t Nothing but Trouble,” in 1986, later followed by the album Rock the House. In 1988 the group released the groundbreaking single “Parents Just Don’t Understand,” which went on to win a Grammy Award (the first Grammy ever presented in the rap performance category).
Smith spent money freely between 1988 and 1989 and underpaid his income taxes. The Internal Revenue Service eventually assessed a $2.8 million tax debt against Smith, took many of his possessions, and garnished his income.
Smith was nearly bankrupt in 1990 when the NBC television network signed him to a contract and built a sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, around him. The show was successful and launched his acting career. Smith set himself the goal of becoming “the biggest movie star in the world,” studying box office successes’ common characteristics.
Although he made a notable dramatic film debut in Six Degrees of Separation while still appearing in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Smith’s film career took off with his role in the buddy cop film Bad Boys (1995) along with co-star Martin Lawrence.
Life as an Actor
In 1996, Smith starred as part of an ensemble cast in Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day. The film was a massive blockbuster, becoming the second highest-grossing film in history at the time and establishing Smith as a prime box office draw. He later struck gold again in the summer of 1997 alongside Tommy Lee Jones in the summer hit Men in Black playing Agent J. In 1998, Smith starred with Gene Hackman in Enemy of the State.
He turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix in favor of Wild Wild West (1999). Despite the disappointment of Wild Wild West, Smith has said that he harbors no regrets about his decision, asserting that Keanu Reeves’s performance as Neo was superior to what Smith himself would have achieved, although in interviews subsequent to the release of Wild Wild West he stated that he “made a mistake on Wild Wild West. That could have been better.”
In 2005, Smith was entered into the Guinness Book of World Records for attending three premieres in a 24-hour time span.
On December 10, 2007, Smith was honored at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Smith left an imprint of his hands and feet outside the world-renowned theater in front of many fans. Later that month, Smith starred in the film I Am Legend, released December 14, 2007. Despite marginally positive reviews, its opening was the largest ever for a film released in the United States in December. Smith himself has said that he considers the film to be “aggressively unique”. A reviewer said that the film’s commercial success “cemented [Smith’s] standing as the number one box office draw in Hollywood.” On December 1, 2008, TV Guide reported that Smith was selected as one of America’s top ten most fascinating people of 2008 for a Barbara Walters ABC special that aired on December 4, 2008.
In 2008 Smith was reported to be developing a film entitled The Last Pharaoh, in which he would be starring as Taharqa. It was in 2008 that Smith starred in the superhero movie Hancock.
Men in Black III opened on May 25, 2012, with Smith again reprising his role as Agent J. This was his first major starring role in four years.
Smith and his son Jaden played father and son in two productions: the 2006 biographical drama The Pursuit of Happyness, and the science fiction film After Earth, which was released on May 31, 2013.
He starred opposite Margot Robbie in the romance drama Focus. He played Nicky Spurgeon, a veteran con artist who takes a young, attractive woman under his wing. Focus was released on February 27, 2015. Smith was set to star in the Sci-Fic thriller Brilliance, an adaptation of Marcus Sakey’s novel of the same name scripted by Jurassic Park writer David Koepp. But he left the project.
Smith played Dr. Bennet Omalu of the Brain Injury Research Institute in the sports drama Concussion, who became the first person to discover chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in a football player’s brain. CTE is a degenerative disease caused by severe trauma to the head that can be discovered only after death. Smith’s involvement is mostly due to his last-minute exit from the Sci-Fi thriller drama Brilliance. Concussion was directed by Peter Landesman and bead filmed in Pittsburgh, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. It received $14.4 million in film tax credits from Pennsylvania. Principal photography started on October 27, 2014. Actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw played his wife. Omalu served as a consultant.
As of November 2015, Smith was set to star in the independent drama Collateral Beauty, which was directed by David Frankel. Smith played a New York advertising executive who succumbs to a deep depression after a personal tragedy.
Nobel Peace Prize Concert December 11, 2009, in Oslo, Norway: Smith with wife Jada and children Jaden and Willow Smith married Sheree Zampino in 1992. They had one son, Trey Smith, born on November 11, 1992, and divorced in 1995. Trey appeared in his father’s music video for the 1998 single “Just the Two of Us”. He also acted in two episodes of the sitcom All of Us and has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and on the David Blaine: Real or Magic TV special.
Personal Life of Will Smith
Smith married actress Jada Koren Pinkett in 1997. Together they have two children: Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born 1998), his co-star in The Pursuit of Happyness and After Earth, and Willow Camille Reign Smith (born 2000), who appeared as his daughter in I Am Legend. Smith and his brother Harry own Treyball Development Inc., a Beverly Hills-based company named after Trey. Smith and his family reside in Los Angeles, California.
Smith was consistently listed in Fortune Magazine’s “Richest 40” list of the forty wealthiest Americans under the age of 40.
Oscar Ceremony in 2022
You already know guys the incident which happened at Oscar Ceremony in 2022 — Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock on stage during this year’s Oscar ceremony. By clicking this you can read more about that incident.
Unfortunately for that behavior, acto Will Smith was banned from attending the Oscars for 10 years.
“The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards,” Academy President David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson said.
