Early in the book, Smith sets up the complicated relationship he had with his father Willard Carroll Smith Sr., who with his mother Caroline Bright, raised Smith and his three siblings in Philadelphia.
Will Smith experienced many ups and downs throughout his childhood while being raised by his parents, Caroline Bright and Willard Carroll Smith Sr. Growing up in West Philadelphia, the actor was one of four kids. He has one older sister, Pamela, and two younger siblings, twins Harry and Ellen.
Smith was born in West Philadelphia, the son of Caroline (Bright), a Philadelphia school board administrator, and Willard Carroll Smith, Sr., a refrigeration engineer. He grew up in West Philadelphia's Wynnefield neighborhood, and was raised Baptist.
Character. Lou is the deadbeat biological father of Will Smith and the ex-husband of Vy. 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.
Early life. Willard Carroll Smith II was born on September 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, to Caroline (née Bright), a school board administrator, and Willard Carroll Smith Sr., a US Air Force veteran and refrigeration engineer. His mother graduated from Carnegie Mellon University.
The heartbreaking moment Will's dad left | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - BBC
Why was Will's dad in jail?
He then dropped out of school by 19 and was later arrested for car theft. At some point, he met Vy, who he had a child with. However, Lou would only get to know Will for the first few years of his life, as he would be sentenced to 10 years in prison for assault and robbery of an old man who supposedly owed him money.
Will Smith's character was actually supposed to brush off the whole thing, but Will's father actually had left him when he was younger and he just fell apart on the set and the hug at the end was from one actor to another, not one character to another.
He also reflected on the emotional moment of becoming a father for the first time at the age of 24 with Trey. “I think that was my first moment of the real weight of parenting,” he recalled.
“I got in one little fight and my mom got scared,” Smith told PP News. “She told me to leave Philly and go stay with my uncle Phil and aunt Viv in their crib in California. “I took a cab, which in hindsight wasn't the most cost effective method of transport.
The two were locked in that epic embrace when Avery doled out even more encouragement. “While he's hugging me, he whispers in my ear, 'That's f---ing acting right there,” recalled Smith, who also revealed the motivation behind that performance. “I wanted him to want me. I wanted him to approve of me.”
Sheree Zampino was married to Will Smith for three years, and the two share one son, Trey Smith. Both went on to marry other people — Smith tied the knot with actress Jada Pinkett Smith in December 1997, while Zampino married former NFL player Terrell Fletcher in 2007 (although they divorced in 2014).
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Will Smith's net worth is $350 million as of 2023. These earnings are thanks to an entertainment career spanning over three decades, from his work as a rapper to his many roles as an actor and producer behind the scenes.
Will was born to Willard Sr., the owner of a refrigeration firm, and Caroline, a school board administrator, on Sept. 25, 1968, in West Philadelphia. He was the second child in the family; older sister Pamela was born in 1964, and the two were later joined by twin siblings Harry and Ellen in 1971.
