WILL SMITH |
| Name: Willard Christopher Smith Jnr. DOB: 25 September 1968 Philadelphia As one of four siblings, young Will first began expressing his talents as a teen by rapping with Jeff Townes, and thus Jazzy Jeff and "The Fresh Prince" was born. Departing from the usual rap styles, Smith was popular for creating radio friendly and humorous lyrics, such as "Parent's Just don't Understand" and "Boom". But while spending and living up his excesses, Smith was underpaying his taxes and the government seized his assets and Smith found he owed 2.8 million in debt, being pulled from his income. He came into acting when NBC created "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" which revolved around him. The show was a success, throwing Smith into the world of acting and Hollywood. He first appeared in the little known "Where the Day Takes You" (1992) alongside Dermort Mulroney, Sean Astin, Lara Flynn Boyle and Alyssa Milano, then with Whoopi Goldbery in "Made in America" (1993). But it was in "Six Degrees of Separation" (1993) in which Smith made his mark as a serious actor, then finally he took the steps to stardom alongside Martin Lawrence in the action packed "Bad Boys" (1995). After the end of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Smith launched a successful solo music career with the album "Big Willie Style", two of the 90's biggest blockbusters introduced Smith as a household name: "Independence Day" (1996) which went on to be 1996's highest grossing film and at one point held the record of the second highest grossing film of all time worldwide (now it sits at 19th); and then with another foray into sci fi with the entertaining "Men In Black", for which Smith gained critical acclaim for his performance with veteran Tommy Lee Jones. But all that he touches isn't gold, when Smith turned down the role of Neo in "The Matrix" and chose to work on "Wild Wild West" which was a critical and commercial failure. "Enemy of the State" a tense big brother-esque thriller with Gene Hackman and "The Legend of Bagger Vance" were not exactly great, but Smith's performance was always something to be noted, and Hollywood was nearly at his feet. In 2001, Smith gained his first Oscar nomination portraying Muhammed Ali in "Ali" (2001) which was helmed by Michael Mann. 2002 saw Smith return as Agent J in "Men in Black 2", and in 2003 he reunited with Martin Lawrence to reproduce the extravaganza of action and humor in "Bad Boys 2". Smith lent his voice for the Dreamworks animation "Shark Tale" in 2004, but it was the electrifying thriller "I, Robot" directed by Alex Proyas which finally made Smith one of the leading and influential stars in Hollywood, in which he earned $28 000 000 in salary. Smith capped off 2005 with the comedy, "Hitch" also starring Eva Mendes. Now finally established as a Hollywood Heavyweight, Smith made another foray into the heart felt drama and captured everyone's attention in "The Pursuit of Happyness" in which he co-starred with his son Jaden. The movie was good, but critics praised the pair's performance. In 2007, Smith took on the role of Colonel Neville in "I Am Legend" an ambitious remake of "The Last Man on Earth" (1964) and "The Omega Man" (1971). Critics praised Smith's efforts as he was required to carry the movie on his own, and was yet another success. In an interesting turn, Smith decided to foray into the world of superheroes in the mixed "Hancock" with Charlize Theron, which was panned as one of his most indifferent performances, but nevertheless a box office hit. Smith's current release is "Seven Pounds", alongside Rosario Dawson and Woody Harrelson. |
| Fun Facts about Will Smith |
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| Will Smith's Awards and Honors |
| Year | Award | Category/Recipient(s) |
| 2008 | Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA | Best Actor - I Am Legend |
| 2002 | BET Awards | Best Actor |
| Will Smith's Upcoming Projects |
| Monsters Hunter (2010) |
