How old was Will Smith during the filming of Fresh Prince of Bel Air?

Like many scripted shows, Smith was quite a few years older than the teenage character he was playing. When the first episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air premiered in September 1990, Smith was 22 years old. Banks was 23 years old when the first episode of Bel-Air aired in February 2022.
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How old was Will Smith in season 1 of Fresh Prince?

Born in 1968, Smith was 22 years old when the series first aired in 1990, potentially 21 if his September birthday hadn't yet arrived (and likely 21 when filming began). By definition, then, he was already an adult and much older than the high school-aged teenager he was purporting to be.
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How old is Will in season 2 of Fresh Prince?

By a few episodes into the second season, Will is still only 17 yet Ashley has aged to 13.
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How did Will Smith get casted for Fresh Prince?

So as fate would have it, in December 1989, Quincy Jones was throwing a birthday party for himself at his home. Will Smith and Benny Medina conversed even more while at the shindig and, as the actor explained during The Fresh Prince Reunion in 2020, that's where Medina formally pitched the show to him.
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When did Will Smith start producing Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?

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 began his acting career.
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‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’: ET on Set With the Cast (Flashback)

Was Fresh Prince based on Will Smith's life?

Smith. The television sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, which began in 1990, was loosely based on Smith's real-life persona. It ran on NBC for six successful seasons, ending at the star's request, and during its run Smith garnered two Golden Globe Award nominations and served as an executive…
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Was Jada Pinkett Smith in Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?

Will and Jada first met in 1994 when a then 19-year-old Jada auditioned to play Will's girlfriend on NBC's "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." In 2017, Jada told "Extra" that she wasn't cast because they told her she was "too short to play Will's girlfriend" — she's 5-foot and he's 6-foot-2.
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How much did Will Smith get paid for Fresh Prince?

Smith made $2.8 million for the first three seasons of The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, but he hardly saw a dime of it because he owed money in back taxes from his rap career.
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Why did Will Smith call himself Fresh Prince?

Smith's charming and mischievous personality earned him the nickname "Prince," which eventually became "Fresh Prince". Smith had become a successful rapper, but lost most of his money because of poor budgeting.
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Why did Will Smith cry in Fresh Prince?

This is the highest-rated episode of the series. Will Smith considers it the most emotional episode because of his feelings about his father, both on the show and in reality. His real-life father was there for him growing up (despite being separated from his mother), but many of his friends never knew their fathers.
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How old was Tatyana Ali in Fresh Prince season 1?

At age 11, Tatyana moved from New York to Los Angeles to establish her career and, not long afterwards, got her breakthrough role:Will Smith's cousin, "Ashley Banks," from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990).
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How old is Carlton in Fresh Prince of Belair?

Carlton, age 16, is the fly-est Black prep student you've ever seen. Captain of the lacrosse team and a faithful GQ subscriber, he is perfectly at home in his privileged world. Carlton has no shortage of confidence, intellect, and wit, yet, all of his bravado masks underlying struggles with anxiety.
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How old is Hilary Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?

Hilary grows up spoiled and privileged in Bel Air. At around 21, she is living at home and hasn't gone to college, still unskilled in menial life tasks, including cooking.
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Why did Will Smith use his real name?

He even revealed why his character on the show was famously named after him. Smith's play cousin Alfonso Ribeiro actually suggested that the actor use his own name. “We had talked and I said, 'Look, if you're ever gonna do this show, you've gotta be Will Smith,” Ribeiro recalled.
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How old was Will at the end of Fresh Prince?

Will Smith was 22 when The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air premiered in 1990 and was 28 in 1996 when the show ended.
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How old is Vivian Banks in Bel-Air?

In her 40s, smart, artistic, worldly, warm and sophisticated; yet under the surface, Viv still has elements of a free-spirited, wild child from Philly.
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Why was Fresh Prince of Bel-Air cancelled?

Fan reaction and letters to Will Smith and NBC persuaded them to renew the show. It ran for two more seasons and ended when Joseph Marcell (Geoffrey the Butler) said he intended to quit his role and return to the UK, prompting the rest of the cast to quit their roles and end the series.
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Why did Lou leave Will?

Lou abandoned his family (Will and Viola "Vy" Smith) when Will was five years old and explains his motives for leaving by saying he was scared to be a father and started to feel trapped. Sometime during the 14-year period that he was absent from Will's life, he became a trucker.
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Who is the highest paid actor?

Adam Sandler's four film projects of 2023 propelled him to an annual salary of $73m (£57m), making him the highest-paid performer in Hollywood, according to Forbes magazine.
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Who is worth more, Jada or Will?

Will Smith and His Jada: Who Is Worth More? Will Smith's wife, actress Jada Pinkett Smith, is also a successful Hollywood personality. However, on the financial front, Will Smith eclipses his wife's net worth which is estimated to be around $50 million as of 2021.
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How old was Will Smith when he got rich?

Music Career

The pair's first single, "Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble," was a hit in 1986. Their 1987 debut album, Rock the House, hit the Billboard Top 200, and made Smith a millionaire before the age of 18.
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Was Will Smith married during Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?

Will and Jada met when she auditioned to play his girlfriend on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She did not get the part, and he was married to Sheree Zampino — with whom he shares son Trey — at the time. “I had a realization I wasn't with the person I was supposed to be with,” he recalled on Red Table Talk in 2018.
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Who was Will Smith's best friend in Fresh Prince of Bel-Air?

Jeffrey A. Townes (aka DJ Jazzy Jeff), played Jazz, Will's friend who was always making trouble in the Banks' home. Townes and Smith performed as DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince prior to the show, which formed the basis of Smith's character on the show.
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Did Will Smith audition for Fresh Prince?

Will Smith Auditioned For The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air At A Quincy Jones House Party. Far from being just another '90s sitcom, "The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air" not only dealt with serious themes, it helped take hip-hop culture mainstream.
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