Will Smith surprised Jabari Banks with ‘Bel-Air’ casting

Bel-Air star Jabari Banks recently shared a story during his appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show of how Will Smith surprised him with an opportunity of a lifetime. 

The hit Peacock series is a dramatized rendition of the beloved ’90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, coincidentally Smith’s first acting role. Both shows follow the life of a Philadelphia teenager as he adjusts to living in Beverly Hills with his family members. In Bel-Air, Banks portrays the fictional character Will Smith. 

In the interview, the 24-year-old opened up about the casting process and how he had to do his zoom audition in his friend’s closet. While mentioning that Smith hopped on a Zoom to reveal the news that the actor landed the lead role in the project, Banks said,

“I was actually here in New York and my friend didn’t have a big space. So he didn’t a wall that I could audition on… It was zoom, and Morgan Cooper he called me and said ‘we want to do one more creative session with you.’ I was like, what is a creative session and so I got in the closet and got in the call. Will Smith actually surprised me and told me I got the role while I was in my friend’s closet.”

This isn’t the first time Banks opened up about getting the role of Smith. In an interview with People magazine last year, Banks disclosed how surreal the entire experience has been, especially since he considered Smith one of his idols growing up. He stated,

“It’s been such a defining factor in my life, for sure. It’s such a huge part of my life. We got the Will Smith Christmas sweaters, my whole family has it. I dressed up as the Fresh Prince in high school.It transcends language, for sure — this whole experience. It’s really above me, I’d say. You know what I mean? It’s ordained. It’s written — it was already written. You can’t write this.”

Since the premiere of Bel-Air in 2022 on Peacock, the series has received positive reviews from fans. As previously reported, the reason surrounding the reviews stemmed from the cast’s portrayal of each well-known character and the different tone the series carried. Despite the positive review, Bel-Air obtained a 65% critical score on Rotten Tomatoes.

After a successful season, Bel-Air was ultimately renewed for a second. In this season, the cast has grown: Diandra Lyle, Justin Cornwell, Nicholas Duvernay, Reno Wilson, and Al-Shabazz Jabateh are set to join the show. 

Season two of Bel-Air is now streaming on Peacock.