Pop Culture | TV | 90s
Will Smith Teases Potential 'Fresh Prince' Reboot
Nearly thirty years ago, the world was blessed with the comedic stylings of a young Will Smith.
Little did we know the show about a street-smart teenager moving in with his rich relatives in Bel-Air, California would launch the young actor into the world of Hollywood stardom, and still be syndicated on our television screens today.
Since breaking into the film industry, Smith has starred in box office hits like, Independence Day, the Men In Black series, The Pursuit of Happyness, and I Am Legend, but he hasn’t forgotten about his roots.
"It was my very first role, and I was very, very focused on being successful, so I learned the whole script and everyone else's lines. If you watch the first four or five episodes, you can see I'm mouthing other people's lines. It's terrible and I can't bear to watch it," Smith said during an interview on The Graham Norton Show last December.
Discussing a potential reboot, Smith shot suggestions down, saying he would now have to play the role of Uncle Phil.
"Man, I'd have to be Uncle Phil in that one. I'd be 50. Like, 'c'mon, Aunt Viv, I'm 50! I can't go out on my own?'"
But, despite being close to a half a century old, not all hope should be lost for Smith reprising his iconic role.
Playing a fictionalized version of himself, Smith captivated the hearts of views across North America with his clever one-liners and his insanely catchy theme song lyrics.
Now, he’s sparking rumors of a potential Fresh Prince revival after he posted a few pictures of cartoonist and comic artist Howard Russell's animated interpretation of the beloved 90s sitcom.
While he said in his post he never imagined the show getting the animated treatment, it was definitely a “hot piece.”
Interestingly enough, according to TMZ, the company that owns the rights to Fresh Prince had recently applied to trademark a bunch of new merchandise, including toys, action figures and kids's games. This leads to speculation there may be more than just new trendy gear in the works.
However, Russell was quick to dispel any rumors of an animated revival.
“TMZ is now talking about the share Will did of my work, and was curious about an actual series. I can tell you, there is no current show being worked on at the moment. I merely hope my work just planted a seed. Fresh Prince is an iconic show, we all loved it,” Russell wrote.
Would you like to see The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air become an animated series?