Will Smith biography, net worth, daughter, son, wife, age, height, Oscar 2025

Will Smith's Biography

Will Smith is just a regular guy from Philadelphia who struck gold twice: in the mid '80s, when he helped pioneer comic hip-hop and ten years later, when he won over audiences and critics worldwide with his acting. He has starred in such modern Hollywood classics as "Independence Day", "Men in Black", "Bad Boys", "I, Robot", "I Am Legend", "The Pursuit of Happiness", "Hancock" and various other notable films. Will was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor three times: in 2002 for portraying a heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali, in 2007 for his role in "The Pursuit of Happiness" and in 2020 for his role in "King Richard". Third time's the charm – Will finally took home his first Oscar. His estimated net worth is $350 million.

Will Smith's life journey inspires respect

Childhood

Will Smith is the second child of a school board administrator and a refrigeration engineer. His school buddies called him "Prince" thanks to his natural charisma and gift of gab, and that nickname stuck with the boy for quite a long time.

Will could talk his way out of any trouble, and despite his mischievous streak, he was actually a brilliant and hardworking student. Will reportedly got a scholarship offer from MIT, but he turned it down to chase his entertainment dreams. He fell in love with music at a very young age and decided to pursue a career in rap.

Rap Career

Will, together with his childhood best friend, Jeffrey Townes, started a band, called «DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince». Will Smith wrote all the band's songs, and none of them contained any profanity. This meant kids could buy their albums without needing parental permission and that's what led this music duo to significant commercial success. On the other hand, gangsta rap artists mocked "DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince," dismissing them as making sappy music for little girls.

Will Smith was the mastermind behind funny lyrics, while his friend created the beat

But the duo's popularity kept growing as, for example, their single «Parents Just Don't Understand» became an instant hit and the following two albums gained platinum status. In 1988 Will Smith and his partner became the first-ever rappers to receive a Grammy.

Will Smith is the first-ever rapper to receive a Grammy

By age 21, the now-famous musician suddenly realized his hard-earned millions had vanished into thin air, and worse yet, he was deep in debt with creditors knocking at his door.

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (Will Smith rap band) – Summertime

As luck would have it, it was at that time that «DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince» popularity began plummeting – comic hip-hop acts started popping up everywhere, and «De La Soul» was their main competitor.

Acting Career

Will Smith got his life-changing break when NBC offered him the starring role in the sitcom «The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air». He landed a role that mirrored his own life – playing an ordinary Philadelphia guy who moves to Beverly Hills, the celebrity-packed neighborhood.

«The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air», Will's first television appearance

The sitcom became a massive hit with audiences and ran for six successful years. Its success allowed Will to pay off all his debts and opened doors to the professional acting world. Riding high on success, Will Smith decided to leave television behind and try his hand at big-screen acting. He made his film debut in 1992 in the drama «Where the Day Takes You», playing a homeless young man named Manny. The following year, he nailed the role of a reckless bad boy in the comedy «Made in America». His portrayal of a charming conman in the comedy-drama «Six Degrees of Separation» wowed both audiences and critics.

Will Smith as a homeless young man («Where the Day Takes You»)

Will Smith gained widespread recognition after starring in the action-comedy «Bad Boys» (1995). He portrayed a policeman alongside Martin Lawrence. They were absolutely perfect together – Smith played a smooth playboy while Lawrence was the devoted family man, and this dynamic duo's chemistry, combined with sharp humor, earned rave reviews from critics.

Epic action-comedy «Bad Boys», starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence

«Independence Day» and other notable films

Since then Will's popularity only went up, as he became a household name in the middle of the '90s. In 1996 he portrayed a brave Captain Steven Hiller in a science fiction action film «Independence Day».

Young Will Smith in the epic «Independence Day»

In 1997, the actor landed one of his most iconic roles – the charismatic Agent J in the sci-fi action comedy «Men in Black». Millions of people around the world fell in love with Smith's performance and his actor duo with Tommy Lee Jones is considered to be one of the best and most recognized from the 90's. This tale of a secret agent dealing with alien immigration earned Smith $5 million.

Around that time Will Smith decided to revive his music career and released two albums back-to-back: «Willenium» and «Big Willie Style», which, as expected, dominated the charts. A-list celebrities began recognizing Will's talent – even Whoopi Goldberg called him «sonny».

Will Smith's success story

Will's next career breakthrough came with the conspiracy thriller «Enemy of the State» opposite Gene Hackman. However, his next role as a cowboy in Barry Sonnenfeld's western action comedy «Wild Wild West» was a total flop, though the soundtrack hit #1 on multiple U.S. charts.

According to Will Smith, his biggest regret is turning down the starring role in the «Matrix» trilogy for this box office bomb, and Neo is now forever associated with Keanu Reeves.

Will Smith could have played Neo in the «Matrix» trilogy

Soon Will was cast to play the one and only Muhammad Ali in a biographical sports drama «Ali». His performance was critically acclaimed and highly praised. The actor himself believes that it had changed his life. Will admits he pushed himself into overdrive, constantly testing the limits of his physical, emotional, and mental abilities. To achieve the closest possible resemblance to the boxing champion, Will Smith exhausted himself with 6-hour daily training sessions, followed a boxer's diet, gained 15 kilos of muscle mass, learned a foreign language, and even gave up sex! Oh, the things he had to do!

After «Ali's» premiere, Will Smith never had to worry about his future again. He secured multiple roles each year, though they were quite similar – playing goofy cops and alien-fighters. In all fairness, he was really good at this, and the audience adored him in «Men in Black II» and «Bad Boys II».

Will Smith in «Bad Boys»

To bring more balance to his career, the actor decided to tackle more serious, dramatic roles. Strong-willed and no-nonsense detective Del Spooner in Alex Proyas's science fiction action film «I, Robot» is one of those.

»I, Robot» – one of the most serious movie roles in Smith's career

Over the next few years, Will Smith became more selective with his roles, choosing only the most high-profile projects. This led him to play a professional dating consultant in the romantic comedy «Hitch» (2005) and a homeless single father in the biographical drama «Pursuit of Happyness» (2006), where he starred alongside his son Jaden Smith.

«Pursuit of Happyness» Will and Jaden Smith portrayed a homeless family

In «I Am Legend» (2007) Will played the sole survivor of a zombie apocalypse in New York. Later, he added another romantic role to his portfolio. He was cast as the love interest of a terminally ill young woman in the drama «Seven Pounds». That same year he played a homeless, perpetually drunk superhero in «Hancock», alongside Atticus Shaffer and Charlize Theron.

After such amazing international success, Will no longer needed to appear in every film offered to him. His recent projects include the intricate romantic crime comedy-drama «Focus», where he starred opposite the brilliant Margot Robbie, the biographical sports drama «Concussion» and the superhero film «Suicide Squad».

Will Smith was cast as the supervillain Deadshot, an elite hitman, in «Suicide Squad». Fun fact: many A-list celebrities including Keanu Reeves, Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, and even Johnny Depp auditioned for this role, but director David Ayer was determined to cast Will. The actor had to shave his head and complete combat shooting training in order to get into character.

Will Smith's Full Interview with Ellen (2019)

Will Smith has served as executive producer on several projects over the past few years (the comedy-drama web series «Cobra Kai», the drama «Life in a Year» and the «Karate Kid» sequel). He also plans to star in a «Hancock» sequel, although the project's status is currently unknown. Will also plans to direct a movie based on the biblical story of Cain and Abel with an unexpected «vampire» twist.

In 2020, several movies featuring Will Smith were set for release. Among them were Bad Boys for Life and King Richard, whose release was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Also, before the lockdown, the sequel to the action movie "Bright" was filmed, but its current status is unknown.

Will Smith's Personal Life

Will was married to Sheree Zampino for three years before their divorce in 1995. They had a son together – Willard Christopher Smith III, who chose to stay with his mother after the divorce was finalized.

Will Smith with his first wife, Sheree Zampino

Will met his second wife, Jada Pinkett, when she auditioned for the role of his character's love interest on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." However, she didn't land the role because the director felt they didn't look right together – Jada appeared too petite and delicate next to the towering, muscular Will. The two became close friends, and over time, as Will's marriage started falling apart, he realized there was something deeper than friendship between him and Jada. They got married in 1997 and have two kids together – son Jaden and daughter Willow.

Although Jada is not as popular and well-known as her husband, she has a rather impressive filmography. She delivered standout performances in the crime drama series "Gotham" and the comedy "Bad Moms." Will's fame has never been an issue for her or caused tension in their marriage; she's completely unfazed by the rumors that inevitably surface whenever Will stars opposite a leading lady: «I don't care that Will may like other women. He can do whatever he wants. In the end, how can he appreciate my beauty, if he can't appreciate the beauty of another woman?».

Will Smith Now

In September 2021, the sports drama "King Richard" was released, telling the story of Richard Williams and his young daughters who would become tennis superstars Serena and Venus.

Will Smith and the real Richard Williams

When the casting was announced, some critics called it an example of colorism, arguing that Smith's lighter skin tone didn't match the real Richard Williams. But those concerns quickly faded after "King Richard's" premiere. Both audiences and critics praised Will's dramatic acting abilities.

Smith earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actor for his role in "King Richard." The March 2022 ceremony took place, but not without controversy. Host Chris Rock cracked a joke about Will's wife Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head, not knowing she suffers from alopecia. He compared Jada with Demi Moore's character in "G.I. Jane". Without saying a word, Smith walked onto the stage and slapped Chris across the face. The slap was clearly painful, but Rock managed to turn it into a joke.

Watch the uncensored moment Will Smith smacks Chris Rock on stage at the Oscars, drops F-bomb

Thirty minutes later, Will returned to the stage – this time to accept his first Oscar.

Will Smith: latest news and articles

Still regrets it: Why Will Smith turned down Christopher Nolan's most famous film

16 Jun 2025

Xavier Joshua Reed

I like Hancock very much, kind of anti superhero movie and Smith is cool there.

2021-05-15 17:37:44
Jared Tyler

Well, the role of Aladdin by black man Will Smith with a blue color is difficult to forget

2021-04-14 17:32:35
Barbara Paul

`Seven Pounds` in my view is the most decent and important movie in the filmography of Will Smith.

2021-04-13 11:43:30
Carlos Isaac Gonzales

Great actor, I Am Legend is a cool film and actually all the movies with him are nice.

2021-04-11 18:09:22
Scott Stewart

My favorite movie with Will is The Pursuit of Happyness, I recommend to watch

2021-03-24 12:19:44

Photos: Will Smith