Biography

Will Smith was the second of four children of Caroline (school board employee) and Willard C Smith Sr. (owner of a refrigeration company). Smith is of both African American and Native American heritage. He grew up in middle class area in West Philadelphia called Wynnefield. Will attended the Overbrook High School located in the Overbrook section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He got the nickname "Prince" because of the way he could charm his way out of trouble. Bright student Will also signed up with the high-status Julia Reynolds Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School in Philadelphia.

Pursuing music, he met Jeffrey A. Townes at a party and they soon began performing together as "DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince". When the duo took off in popularity, Smith made and spent a lot of money on a house, cars and jewelry; leading to his near bankruptcy in his early twenties.

Luckily, in 1989, he met Benny Medina, who had an idea for a sitcom based on his life in Beverly Hills. Smith loved the idea as did NBC which put on the "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (1990). The plot was simple - Will basically played himself; a street-smart West Philly kid transplanted to Beverly Hills. The series lasted 6 years. During that time, he ventured into movies where the critics took note of him in Six Degrees of Separation (1993). With the success that came with the action picture Bad Boys (1995), Will's movie career was set. He had a huge Blockbuster hit with Independence Day (1996), where he plays the alien-battling Marine Corps Captain Steven Hiller.

Career

Met wife Jada Pinkett Smith when she tried out for the role of his girlfriend on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (1990). The role eventually went to Nia Long.
Has three children. Son, Willard Smith III (Trey Smith) born in November 11, 1992, with Sheree Smith. Son, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (Jaden Smith) born July 8, 1998 and daughter, Willow Camille Reign Smith (Willow Smith) born October 31, 2000 with Jada Pinkett Smith.
Has said he based his character Captain Steven Hiller in Independence Day (1996) on his favorite big screen hero, Harrison Ford, most notably his performances of Han Solo in Star Wars (1977) and its sequels.
Also known as rap artist "The Fresh Prince.".
Will's siblings are: Pam Smith (born in 1964), and twins Ellen and Harry Smith (born in 1971).
Won a Grammy Award for the song "Summertime" during his rap career.
Received the first ever Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance, for the song "Parents Just Don't Understand" in 1989 with his partner Jeffrey A. Townes (aka Jazzy Jeff).
Enjoys playing chess.
Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [1998]
Smith's pilot test show for "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (1990) was directed by Debbie Allen.
Met first wife, Sheree Smith, at a taping of "A Different World" (1987) in 1991.
As a public role model, hosted the Presidential Inaugural Celebration for Youth, as part of the Gala for President Bill Clinton. [January 1993]
Graduate of Philly's legendary Overbrook High School, whose alumni include Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Lear, Wali 'Wonder' Jones, Walt Hazzard, The Dovells, The Orlons, DeeDee Sharp, etc. and, in tribute to his student years there, his production company is called Overbrook Entertainment.
Attended the prestigious Julia Reynolds Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School in Philadelphia.
Turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix (1999).
First hip-hop artist to be nominated for an Academy Award.
Speaks fluent Spanish.
Ranked #2 on Star TV's Top Ten Box Office stars of the 1990s (2003).
Had a chart-hit together with DJ Jazzy Jeff (aka Jeffrey A. Townes.
Dropped from Columbia Records as an artist after lackluster sales of his third solo album, which was self-titled, and greatest hits compilation. [Summer 2003]
Incorporates the line "Aw, hell no!" into all his movies as a running catch phrase like Arnold Schwarzenegger's "I'll be back!".
Ranked #15 in TV Guide's list of "TV's 25 Greatest Teen Idols" (23 January 2005 issue).
Gained a place in the Guinness World Records book for most public appearances in 12 hours, by attending three red carpet "premieres" for Hitch (2005/I) on 22nd February 2005. He walked the red carpet and introduced the film at Manchester, Birmingham, and finally for the premiere in London, England.
Once stated that in his whole career, he most regrets turning down the part of Neo in The Matrix (1999) and the film that he most regrets making was Wild Wild West (1999).
He has been at his adult height of 6' 2" since he was 13, although he is now about 60 pounds heavier than he first was when he reached this height.
Premiere Magazine ranked him as #44 on a list of the Greatest Movie Stars of All Time in their Stars in Our Constellation feature (2005).
He sang a few lines "Wild Wild West" to his on screen cousin Carleton, a movie in which he starred 6 years later.
Hosted the MTV Movie Awards in 1994.
Was considered for the role of "Mr. Smith" in Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005) before Brad Pitt was cast.
Is supposedly a huge fan of the Swedish well-known (but barely known in the U.S.) melodic heavy metal band Soilwork.
Raked #66 in VH1's 100 greatest Teen Stars.
Holds the record for most Kids Choice Awards with a whopping six wins.
Ranked #14 on Premiere's 2006 "Power 50" list. Had ranked #18 in 2005. He is the second-highest ranked actor, behind only Tom Cruise.
He and Jada Pinkett Smith were forced to leave their home in California because a bush fire threatened to destroy it and several other houses in the same area. [October 2005]
His 1995 divorce from ex-wife Sheree Smith led to a $900,000 lump sum divorce settlement for Zampino plus $24,000 per month in alimony and child support; this equals $288,000 a year.
Lost his place in the Guiness World Records book for most public appearances in 12 hours to German actors Jürgen Vogel and Daniel Brühl, who attended four red carpet premieres of their movie Ein Freund von mir (2006), one more than Will (22 October 2006).
In the 1998 rap lyrics of "Gettin' Jiggy", Will Smith says that Muhammad Ali would call him "The Greatest." Two and a half years later, he played the title role in Ali (2001).
Along with early partner DJ Jazzy Jeff (aka Jeffrey A. Townes), was the first to start scratching records and started the trend in the early '80s.
An animated caricature of him appeared in "Men in Black: The Series" (1997) (the animated series adaptation of Men in Black (1997)), alongside a caricature of his MIB co-star Tommy Lee Jones, set against a shot that parodied one of the famous low angle shots of a building being threatened by a flying saucer, an in-joke reference to Smith's 1996 hit "Men in Black: The Series" (1997), which preceded Men in Black (1997).
His character from Men in Black (1997), Agent Jay, was not originally written to specifically be a black man. In fact, the role was offered to Caucasian actors Chris O'Donnell and David Schwimmer before Smith accepted the part.
Had to undergo treatment on his shoulder in a New York hospital after he suffered a strain. [March 2007]
Was among the guests at Tom Cruise's and Katie Holmes's wedding ceremony in Italy.
Ranked #30 on VH1's 50 Greatest Hip Hop Artists along with DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince.
Ranked #29 on VH1's 100 Sexiest Artists.
2007 - Ranked #5 on EW's The 50 Smartest People in Hollywood.
December 2007 - According to Forbes, for each dollar he got paid, Smith's movies averaged $10 of gross income.
Was a millionaire before the age of 20.
In 2004, his net worth was estimated to be $188 million.
In 2007, Forbes Magazine estimated his earnings for the year at $31 million.
Good friends with Ken Foree.
Huge fan of Professional Wrestling.
Is often called "Mr. July" by the media due to the fact that most of his summer blockbusters open in July.
As of Hancock (2008), he holds the record for the actor to star in the most consecutive $100 million-grossing movies (8).
He and his daughter Willow Smith both had movies opening 2 July, 2008. His was Hancock (2008), hers was Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008).
Has appeared in two films starting with the word "I", I, Robot (2004) and I Am Legend (2007).
Wrote and performed the song, "Just the Two of Us", about his first son, Trey Smith.
Was considered for the role of Detective James Carter in Rush Hour (1998).
Holds the record of appearing in the most consecutive $100 million-grossing movies (8).
Was in consideration for the part of Curtis Taylor Jr in Dreamgirls (2006). However Jamie Foxx was cast instead.
Birth Card is the Queen of Hearts.
Brother-in-law of Caleeb Pinkett.
He has solved Rubik's cubes in both The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and The Pursuit of Happiness. This is a real talent of his; he has shown on live TV that he can solve a Rubik's Cube in under 55 seconds.