Early Life

Willard Carroll Smith II was born on September 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. His mother, Caroline (née Bright), was a school board administrator, and his father, Willard Carroll Smith Sr., was a US Air Force veteran and refrigeration engineer. He grew up in West Philadelphia’s Wynnefield neighborhood and was raised Baptist.

Career Beginnings

Smith began his acting career starring as a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990–1996). He first gained recognition as part of a hip hop duo with DJ Jazzy Jeff, with whom he released five studio albums and the US Billboard Hot 100 top 20 singles “Parents Just Don’t Understand”, “A Nightmare on My Street”, “Summertime”, “Ring My Bell”, and “Boom! Shake the Room” from 1984 to 1994.

Solo Music Career

He released the solo albums Big Willie Style (1997), Willennium (1999), Born to Reign (2002), and Lost and Found (2005), which contained the US number-one singles “Gettin’ Jiggy wit It” and “Wild Wild West”. He has received four Grammy Awards for his rap performances.

Acting Career

Smith achieved wider fame as a leading man for the action film Bad Boys (1995) and the science fiction comedy Men in Black (1997); he later reprised his role in several sequels. After starring in the thrillers Independence Day (1996) and Enemy of the State (1998), he received Academy Award for Best Actor nominations for his portrayal as Muhammad Ali in Ali (2001), and as Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness (2006). His other commercially successful films include I, Robot (2004), Shark Tale (2004), Hitch (2005), I Am Legend (2007), Hancock (2008), Seven Pounds (2008), Suicide Squad (2016) and Aladdin (2019).

Recent Work

For his portrayal of Richard Williams in the biographical sports drama King Richard (2021), Smith won the Academy Award for Best Actor. At the 2022 ceremony, shortly before winning, Smith faced backlash for slapping presenter Chris Rock after Rock made an unscripted joke referencing Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Smith subsequently resigned from the Academy and was banned from attending all their events for ten years.

Personal Life

Smith has been married twice. His first marriage was to Sheree Zampino in 1992, but they divorced in 1995. He then married Jada Pinkett in 1997. They separated in 2016. Smith has three children, including Jaden, Willow, and Trey Smith.

Will Smith’s Net Worth

As of 2023, Will Smith has a net worth of $350 million¹. He has earned millions from his various endeavors, including film salaries, music, and social media¹.

Motivational Works

Will Smith has shared his wisdom and life advice in numerous motivational speeches. He has spoken about overcoming fear, doubt, and challenges, and how to pursue dreams and goals with passion, work ethic, and self-belief²³⁴. His motivational speeches have been translated into several motivational videos with multiple millions of views⁵.

Awards

Throughout his career, Will Smith has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and four Grammy Awards⁶⁷. He has been nominated for five Golden Globe Awards, two Academy Awards, and has won four Grammy Awards⁸. For his role as Richard Williams in King Richard (2021), he received the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award⁶.

Controversies

During the 94th Academy Awards on March 27, 2022, actor Will Smith walked onstage and slapped comedian Chris Rock across the face with an open-palm strike during Rock’s presentation of the Best Documentary Feature award. The slap was in response to a joke Rock made about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, which she had been shaving since 2021 due to alopecia areata⁹.

In terms of lawsuits, there was an incident in 2023 where Smith denied allegations of having sexual relations with his close friend Duane Martin and planned to bring a lawsuit against the man who made the allegation¹⁰.