Will Smith has revealed that James Avery whispered something in his ear during a famous emotional scene in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Avery, who portrayed Philip “Uncle Phil” Banks on the series, died in December 2013 aged 68 following complications from open heart surgery.
Actor James Avery, who played the beloved Uncle Phil on the hit 1990s sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” has died, his publicist said Wednesday. He was 68. The cause of death was complications from open-heart surgery, said his manager, Toni Benson.
He was the regular voice of Shredder up until season 7's White Belt, Black Heart, where after he left the series, Townsend Coleman filled in for the remainder of the season and Bill Martin then took over the role starting in Season 8. He was also better known as Philip "Uncle Phil" Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
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.
Banks is "the stern but loving uncle to Will Smith's character", parenting in this way both with Will and with his own children. By the end of the series, Banks has come to think of Will as his own son.
The heartbreaking moment Will's dad left | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - BBC
Did Will Smith live with his aunt and uncle?
After hearing about the subsequent fight with them he got into, his mother sends him to live with his wealthy aunt and uncle (Vivian and Phillip Banks) in Bel-Air.
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.
Will Smith's path to superstardom began in West Philadelphia, where he was raised by his single mother, Caroline Bright. With determination and talent, Smith rose to fame as an actor and rapper, becoming one of the most beloved figures in Hollywood.
Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998) is an American rapper and actor. The son of Jada Pinkett-Smith and Will Smith, he has received various accolades, including a Teen Choice Award, an MTV Movie Award, a BET Award and a Young Artist Award.
With Bel-Air's Uncle Phil, an actor with a skinnier build was likely cast because a lot of jokes about his character in the original series revolved around his weight.
Concept and creation. Kevin Eastman got the idea for the Shredder's armor from large trapezoidal cheese graters which he envisioned on a villainous character's arms. He then said, "Could you imagine a character with weapons on his arms like this?" Peter Laird suggested the name The Shredder.
Although known as the uncle/patriarch and judge "Philip Banks" on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990), James Avery was a classically trained actor and scholar. A native of Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA, he joined the US Navy after graduating high school and served in Vietnam from 1968 to 1969.
Actor James Avery had a series of medical issues that contributed to his passing. The findings come as a result of an autopsy conducted on the star who played Uncle Phil on the hit 90s sitcom “Fresh Prince of Bel Air.” Avery died from complications following open heart surgery on Dec. 31.
Early in Will's career, he married his first wife Sheree Zampino and shortly after, they welcomed their son Trey. While Will says that he immediately recognized the profound impact of fatherhood at age 24, he took a step back from his role as a dad when he and Sheree divorced two years later.
In his memoir, Will, the 53-year-old Men in Black actor wrote that while his dad was present at every game, play, and recital" during his childhood and also supported him throughout his career, he was "violent" and had attacked his then-wife and Will's mother, Caroline.
Two years after Smith and Zampino's divorce was finalized, Pinkett Smith and her now-husband wed in 1997. Zampino later remarried football player Terrell Fletcher, though the couple split in 2015.
In real life, he's a father to biological offspring Trey, Jaden and Willow but 51-year-old Will Smith is also “grandpa.” Or at least that's how a character in “Bad Boys for Life” refers to the A-lister formerly known as “The Fresh Prince.”
His mother graduated from Carnegie Mellon University. He grew up in West Philadelphia's Wynnefield neighborhood and was raised Baptist. He has an elder sister named Pamela and two younger siblings, twins Harry and Ellen.
