1985–1992: DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince Smith started as the
MC of the hip-hop duo
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, with his childhood friend
Jeffrey "DJ Jazzy Jeff" Townes as
turntablist and producer. Townes and Smith were introduced to each other by chance in 1985, as Townes was performing at a house party only a few doors down from Smith's residence, and he was missing his
hype man. Smith decided to fill in. They both felt strong chemistry, and Townes was upset when his hype man finally made it to the party. Soon after, the two decided to collaborate. Smith enlisted a friend,
Ready Rock C, to join as the beatboxer of the group, making them a trio. Philadelphia-based Word Records released their first single in 1986 when
A&R man
Paul Oakenfold introduced them to Champion Records with their single "
Girls Ain't Nothing but Trouble", a tale of funny misadventures that landed Smith and his former DJ and rap partner Mark Forrest (Lord Supreme) in trouble. The song sampled the theme song of "
I Dream of Jeannie". Smith became known for light-hearted story-telling raps and capable, though profanity-free, "battle" rhymes. The single became a hit a month before Smith graduated from high school. Based on this success, the duo were brought to the attention of
Jive Records and
Russell Simmons. The duo's first album,
Rock the House, which was first released on Word Up in 1986 debuted on Jive in March 1987. The group received the first
Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance in 1989 for "
Parents Just Don't Understand" (1988), though their most successful single was "
Summertime" (1991), which earned the group their second Grammy and peaked at number 4 on the
Billboard Hot 100. Smith and Townes are still friends and claim that they never split up, having made songs under Smith's solo performer credit. Smith spent money freely around 1988 and 1989 and underpaid his income taxes. Smith was struggling financially in 1990 when the
NBC television network signed him to a contract and built a sitcom,
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, around him.
1993–1997: Solo music and film breakthrough Smith's first major roles were in the drama
Six Degrees of Separation (1993) and the action film
Bad Boys (1995) in which he starred opposite
Martin Lawrence. The latter film was commercially successful, grossing $141.4 million worldwide. However, critical reception was generally mixed. In 1996, Smith starred as part of an ensemble cast in
Roland Emmerich's
Independence Day. The film was a massive blockbuster, becoming the second highest-grossing film in history at the time and establishing Smith as a prime box office draw. In the summer of 1997, he starred alongside
Tommy Lee Jones in the hit
Men in Black, playing
Agent J. The film was released on July 2 by
Columbia Pictures and grossed over $589.3 million worldwide against a $90 million budget, becoming the year's third highest-grossing film, with an estimated 54,616,700 tickets sold in the U.S. It received positive reviews, with critics praising its humor and Jones's and Smith's performances. During the summer of 1997, Smith also began his solo music career with the release of "
Men in Black", the theme song for the film, which topped singles charts in several regions across the world, including the UK. "Men in Black" (and second single "
Just Cruisin'") was later included on Smith's debut solo album
Big Willie Style, which reached the top ten of the U.S.
Billboard 200 and was certified nine times platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The third single from the album, "
Gettin' Jiggy wit It", became Smith's first
Billboard Hot 100 number one when it was released in 1998.
1998–2012: Leading man status In 1998, Smith starred with
Gene Hackman in
Enemy of the State. although in interviews subsequent to the release of
Wild Wild West, he said that he "made a mistake on
Wild Wild West. That could have been better". Smith's second album was again supported by the release of a film theme song as the lead single: "
Wild Wild West", featuring
Dru Hill and
Kool Moe Dee, topped the
Billboard Hot 100 and was certified gold by the RIAA. which reached number 25 on the
UK Music Video Chart. The same year, he was also featured on
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air co-star
Tatyana Ali's single "
Boy You Knock Me Out", which reached number three on the
UK Singles Chart and topped the
UK R&B Singles Chart. Smith portrayed heavyweight boxer
Muhammad Ali in the 2001 biopic
Ali. For his performance, he was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Actor, and the
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama. In 2002, following a four-year musical hiatus, Smith returned with his third album
Born to Reign, which reached number 13 on the
Billboard 200 and was certified gold by the RIAA. 2003 saw Smith return for
Bad Boys II, the sequel to the 1995 film
Bad Boys; the film follows detectives Burnett and Lowrey investigating the flow of
ecstasy into Miami. Despite receiving generally negative reviews, the film was a box-office success, grossing $270 million worldwide. Smith and his son
Jaden played father and son in the 2006 biographical drama
The Pursuit of Happyness. In the film, Smith portrays
Chris Gardner. Smith first became interested in making a film about Gardner after seeing him on
20/20 and connected with him during production. The film, along with Smith's performance, received praise. On December 10, 2007, Smith was honored at
Grauman's Chinese Theatre on
Hollywood Boulevard. Smith left an imprint of his hands and feet outside the theater in front of many fans. Later that month, Smith starred in the film
I Am Legend, released on December 14, 2007. Alongside marginally positive reviews, its opening was the largest ever for a film released in the United States during December. Smith himself has said that he considers the film to be "aggressively unique". A reviewer said that the film's commercial success "cemented [Smith's] standing as the number one box office draw in Hollywood". On December 1, 2008,
TV Guide reported that Smith was selected as one of America's top ten most fascinating people of 2008 for a
Barbara Walters ABC special that aired on December 4, 2008. In 2008, Smith was reported to be developing a film entitled
The Last Pharaoh, in which he would be starring as
Taharqa. Smith later starred in the superhero film
Hancock, which grossed $227,946,274 in the United States and Canada and had a worldwide total of $624,386,746. Sometime between 2008 and early 2009, Smith was offered the lead role in
Inception but turned it down because he did not understand the story. On August 19, 2011, it was announced that Smith returned to the studio with producer La Mar Edwards to work on his fifth studio album. Smith again reprised his role as Agent J with
Men in Black 3, which opened on May 25, 2012, his first major starring role in four years. After the release of the film, Smith was content with ending his work with the franchise, saying, "I think three is enough for me. Three of anything is enough for me. We'll look at it and we'll consider it, but it feels like that it might be time to let someone else do that".
Men in Black 3, released ten years after
Men in Black II (2002), grossed over $624 million worldwide. Unadjusted for inflation, it is the highest-grossing film in the series.
2013–2022: Career fluctuations and King Richard In 2013, Smith starred in
After Earth with his son Jaden. The film was a disappointment at the domestic box office and was panned critically. Calling the film "the most painful failure in my career", Smith ended up taking a year and a half break as a result. co-star
Margot Robbie in 2016 Smith starred opposite
Margot Robbie in the romance drama
Focus, released on February 27, 2015. He played Nicky Spurgeon, a veteran con artist who takes a young, attractive woman under his wing. Smith was set to star in the sci-fi thriller
Brilliance, an adaptation of
Marcus Sakey's novel of the same name scripted by
Jurassic Park writer
David Koepp, but he left the project to work on the
Ridley Scott-produced sports drama
Concussion. In
Concussion, Smith played Dr.
Bennet Omalu of the
Brain Injury Research Institute, the first to discover
chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Smith reported he had doubts about the film early in the production, saying, "some of my happiest memories are of watching my son catch and throw a
football. I didn't want to be the guy who did a movie saying football could be dangerous". These views subsided when he met Omalu, whose words about American ideals resonated with Smith. Smith's performance was praised for being "sensitive [and] understated". In 2016, Smith played
Deadshot in the supervillain team-up action film
Suicide Squad. Smith's participation in the film meant choosing it over a role in
Independence Day: Resurgence, which he said would be like "clinging and clawing backwards". While
Suicide Squad was a massive financial success, earning over $700 million at the box office, the film received negative reviews from critics. Christopher Orr, film critic from
The Atlantic wrote that "the latest offering from the DC Comics superhero universe may be the most disastrous yet". Later that year, Smith starred in director
David Frankel's drama
Collateral Beauty, playing a New York advertising executive who succumbs to a deep depression after a personal tragedy. Weeks after signing Smith onto the film, his father was diagnosed with cancer, from which he died in 2016. As part of his role required him to read about religion and the afterlife, he was brought closer to the elder Smith, calling the experience "a beautiful way to prepare for a movie and an even more majestic way to say goodbye to my father". The film marked the lowest box office opening of Will Smith's career. The film also received near universal negative reviews from film critics.
Hollywood Reporter critic David Rooney criticized Smith's performance writing as "the least interesting component in a madly overqualified cast". His film
Bright was distributed via Netflix on December 22, 2017. An urban fantasy, it was the most expensive film for Netflix to date. Smith collaborated with his director from
Suicide Squad,
David Ayer. This would also be another critical disappointment for Smith, with critics panning the film.
Richard Roeper of
The Chicago Sun-Times criticized the film and Smith's performance writing, "By the time Will Smith barks [the line, "Dude, you can't go through elf town!"] with 100 percent urgency and sincerity in the mindboggling mess that is "Bright," it's clear we are watching a truly terrible, mountainous pile of genre-blending garbage". Also in 2017, Smith released the song "Get Lit" a collaboration between him and his former group mate Jazzy Jeff, and launched his own YouTube channel, which has over 6 million subscribers and 294 million total views. Smith performed the official song "
Live It Up" alongside American singer
Nicky Jam and Kosovar singer
Era Istrefi at the closing ceremony of the
2018 FIFA World Cup in Moscow, Russia. That September, Smith appeared, alongside
Bad Bunny, on the
Marc Anthony song "
Está Rico". 's official song "
Live It Up". Smith portrayed the
Genie (originally voiced by
Robin Williams) in the
live-action adaptation of Disney's
Aladdin, directed by
Guy Ritchie. He also participated in the soundtracks by recording singles: "Arabian Nights (2019)", "
Friend Like Me", and "
Prince Ali". The film was released on May 24, 2019.
Aladdin grossed over $1 billion worldwide to become Smith's highest-grossing film, surpassing
Independence Day. Smith was also featured on rapper Logic's song "Don't Be Afraid To Be Different" (2019), from his fifth studio album
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. Smith appeared as an assassin who faces off against a younger clone of himself in
Ang Lee's
Gemini Man, released on October 11, 2019. The film was a
box office bomb and received negative reviews from critics.
Varietys Peter DeBruge called the film "a high-concept misfire" and wrote: "In practice, it's been a nearly impossible project to get made, passing through the hands of countless actors and falling through multiple times because the technology wasn't there yet. At least, that's been the excuse, although judging by the finished product, it was the script that never lived up to the promise of its premise". Later that year, Smith had his second starring role in an animated film, in
Spies in Disguise, opposite
Tom Holland. Smith voiced Lance Sterling, a spy who teams up with the nerdy inventor who creates his gadgets (Holland). In 2020, he reteamed with Martin Lawrence for the third film in their franchise,
Bad Boys for Life. In 2019, Smith and
Keisuke Honda led a $46 million
investment round in esports organization
Gen.G. In June 2020, it was announced that Smith would star in
Emancipation, directed by
Antoine Fuqua, in which he portrays Peter, a runaway slave, who outsmarts hunters and the Louisiana swamp on a journey to the
Union Army. Smith's memoir
Will, which was written with
Mark Manson, the author of
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, was published on November 9, 2021, and promoted with a tour. The book is a journey of self-knowledge recalling childhood traumas, his relationship with his father, and his experiences with
ayahuasca. In the same year, he and his
Westbrook Studios company signed a deal with
National Geographic. Smith portrayed
Richard Williams, father and coach of tennis players
Venus and
Serena Williams, in the 2021 film
King Richard. For his performance, he won the
Academy Award for Best Actor,
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, and the
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role. On February 7, 2022, National Geographic announced that Smith would star in a series titled
Pole to Pole, which will stream on
Disney+. The series follows Smith and his film crew as they go on a trek from the South Pole to the North Pole, crossing all of Earth's
biomes and spending time in communities along the way. Part of the filming took place during an expedition in the
Ecuadorian Amazon which helped discover the
northern green anaconda.
2022 Oscars incident During the
94th Academy Awards on March 27, 2022, Smith walked onstage and slapped presenter and comedian
Chris Rock who had made a joke about his wife
Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head with a reference to the main protagonist in the 1997 film
G.I. Jane. Smith then returned to his seat and yelled at Rock, twice saying "Keep my wife's name out your fucking mouth!" Pinkett Smith had been diagnosed with
alopecia areata in 2018 and would later shave her head due to the condition. The
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) said that Smith was asked to leave the ceremony but he refused. Later in the night, Smith was named
Best Actor for
King Richard and apologized to the Academy and the other nominees, but not to Rock, in his acceptance speech. The live audience gave Smith two standing ovations. Smith remained at the ceremony until its conclusion and participated in the celebrations later that evening. Following public backlash, Smith issued a formal apology via a public
Instagram post.
ABC, AMPAS, and the
Screen Actors Guild condemned Smith following the incident, prompting an investigation by the Academy's Board of Governors. Rock declined to press charges against Smith, according to the
Los Angeles Police Department. On April 1, 2022, Smith tendered his resignation from the Academy, writing in part: I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken. I want to put the focus back on those who deserve attention for their achievements and allow the Academy to get back to the incredible work it does to support creativity and artistry in film. So, I am resigning from membership in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and will accept any further consequences the Board deems appropriate. The AMPAS President
David Rubin accepted the resignation in an official statement but said they would continue their investigation. Smith's resignation means he is no longer able to vote on Oscar nominations as a member of the Academy. Commentators have speculated that Smith's resignation from the Academy and other related fallout from the slap would damage his "family brand". On April 8, 2022, the Academy announced its decision to ban Smith from future Oscars galas and associated events for 10 years. Several film projects that Smith had been involved in were put on hold as a result of the controversy. In a statement to CNN, Smith stated: "I accept and respect the Academy's decision". Smith offered an on camera apology on July 29, saying he was "deeply remorseful" for his actions. As a result of the incident, Netflix cancelled production on an action film that was set to star Smith titled
Fast and Loose. In December 2022,
Emancipation was released to mixed reviews and was a commercial failure. Producer
Todd Black partially attributed the failure to Smith's involvement following the Oscar incident.
2023–present: Action films and return to music In 2023, it was announced that Smith would co-star in
Bad Boys: Ride or Die, the fourth installment in the
Bad Boys film series. The film includes a comedic moment inspired by the Oscars incident. Smith is set to co-star with
Michael B. Jordan in a sequel to
I Am Legend. The film is in active development. Smith was attached to star in
crime thriller Sugar Bandits, but exited the project in September 2024 due to scheduling conflicts with another undisclosed project; he will remain involved as a producer. The following year, he signed a first look deal with
Paramount Pictures through his production company, Westbrook. In September 2023, it was reported by
Vibe magazine that
Joyner Lucas and Smith would be working together on a joint album. On May 19, Smith confirmed new music coming in 2024 in an interview with ET and that it is the most personal music he had ever done, with
Teddy Swims confirming he recorded music with Will for the upcoming project. On June 27, 2024, Smith announced on his Instagram that his first solo single in nearly 20 years was coming out the following day, "
You Can Make It", saying "Through some of my darkest moments, music has always been there for me - to lift me and help me grow. It's my humble wish that it can do the same for you and bring you all the joy and light you deserve". The song released at midnight that evening, featuring
Fridayy and the
Sunday Service Choir. On July 24, 2024, it was announced that Smith had signed a new distribution deal with SLANG, a newly formed independent label. On July 26, 2024, Smith released another single "Work of Art", featuring his son
Jaden and
Russ. On December 12, Smith released another single, "TANTRUM", with Joyner Lucas. In 2025, Smith announced his fifth studio album,
Based on a True Story, which was released on March 28, 2025. The album consists of 14 tracks, including five previously released singles and nine new songs. On March 23, 2025, Smith performed at the
2025 CONCACAF Nations League final at
SoFi Stadium in
Inglewood, California. ==Personal life==