He may not look it, but Will Smith is pushing 50, a far cry from the fresh-faced 22-year-old who landed the titular lead in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air back in 1990. What’s more than a little mind-blowing is that, at 48, Smith is actually older than the late James Avery was when the latter first started playing Uncle Phil on Fresh Prince (Avery was 44 when the show premiered). It’s safe to say that Smith has aged a bit better than his co-star did, but a recent shot of the actor is drawing plenty of comparisons to his on-screen uncle.
Smith recently fulfilled a long-time dream by bungee-jumping from the Victoria Falls bridge. “This is going to be a cool shot, this is going to be a really cool shot,” he says in the video, which you can find below. “Bungee-jumping Victoria Falls, I have been wanting to do this for almost 20 years. This is living! This is living right here!” In this case, living is doing so long enough to embark on death-defying extra curriculars … and to see yourself become Uncle Phil.
When did Will Smith become Uncle Phil??? pic.twitter.com/XzZrKaxBOj
— Calev (@_calev) March 12, 2017
Yeah, this is kind of blowing our minds and it’s safe to say we’re not the only ones in disbelief.
Can't tell if old will smith or uncle phil pic.twitter.com/qce3HztLMX
— zach hill (@zrobhill) March 14, 2017
Holy shit Will Smith is becoming Uncle Phil pic.twitter.com/rBYMzMXUHA
— Pauly Casillas (@PaulyPeligroso) March 12, 2017
When you become your Uncle. That is Will Smith looking like Uncle Phil ahhah pic.twitter.com/2eJX1xf4aX
— Sayduh (@Sayduhtv) March 14, 2017
Some have even suggested that if they remake The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Smith should play the Uncle Phil role.
They should do a new fresh Prince with Will acting as Uncle Phil pic.twitter.com/ZARyNY6sk9
— #CrownBySowa (@StrictlySowa) March 14, 2017
However, don’t expect anything like that soon (if ever), as Smith has gone on record in saying that he has no interest in doing a Fuller House-like remake for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. “I don’t think ever,” Smith told E!Online last year when asked whether he’d be interested in reviving the show. “Like pretty close when hell freezes over. Like we’re going to leave that one alone.”
Via: Uproxx