Will Smith is known for being an Oscar-winning movie star today, but one can never forget that his acting career began with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. By working on the beloved NBC sitcom (which can be streamed with a Max subscription), Smith was really able to get his feet wet when it came to the craft. He was apparently a bit green in the beginning, and one of the series’ showrunners could see that. With that in mind, the producer sought to fix that by doing something Smith supposedly disliked.
Gary H. Miller joined Fresh Prince as showrunner for Season 4, which began in the fall of 1993. Changes had to be made at the time (especially since OG Aunt Viv actress Janet Hubert left the year prior and had to be recast). Miller ultimately remained with the show through its fifth season and apparently forged a complex relationship with its lead actor. Miller recently admitted that he could see right away that Will Smith would be a star, but he also noticed that he’d picked up a few less-than-desirable habits for his work:
We had a very interesting relationship of the two seasons that I was [a part of]…. When When I took over the show, he kind of had his own way all the time, and I said, ‘Look, I’m not like that,’ I said. And I think he respected that. And I told them things like, ‘Look, you’re telegraphing your joke, because you don’t have confidence, and so you’re touching the actor in the scene with you right before the joke. It’s a thing you do, a habit you do. I know the joke is coming next.’ Stuff like that, we discussed.
Based on what’s been said over the years, Will Smith did have to overcome something of a learning curve after he was tapped for the beloved NBC sitcom. It’s been said that he actually used to mess up his co-stars during tapings, because he would mouth their lines to them in an attempt to memorize his own. (That’s still one of Smith’s habits today, according to Bad Boys co-star John Salley.) As for Smith’s other peccadillo, Gary H. Miller sought to smoothen out the star’s skills with some vintage TV:
I made him sit and watch – he hated this – the old Sergeant Bilko show, You’ll Never Get Rich with Phil Silvers. I said, watch this guy. Watch this guy drive an episode. No matter how flimsy the storyline is, it’’s like a moving train and he takes everybody on the train with him, and you get to the end. I said, ‘That’s the kind of energy we need in twenty two minutes.’ Because slow time in a twenty two minute show is deadly.
One of the few TV shows to change its name following the pilot, You’ll Never Get Rich or The Phil Silvers Show is widely considered to be one of the greatest sitcoms ever made. It may seem dated to some people now, but Silvers was indeed a comedic genius, who was more than capable of keeping up the energy during an episode. I can completely understand why Gary H. Miller had Will Smith watch those classic reruns.
Based on the final few seasons of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, I’d say that the eventual Oscar winner picked up some great tips, as his performances are pitch-perfect. He also had some great co-stars to learn from as well, including the late, great James Avery, who played Uncle Phil. Just recently, Will Smith also talked about observing co-star Alfonso Ribeiro, who famously portrayed the quirky Carlton Banks. It certainly takes a skilled ensemble to make a sitcom work, and I’m glad the cast and crew helped the star find his footing.