Over the years, the principal members of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s cast remained relatively close, and they still are to this day. There was, however, a bit of friction between lead actor Will Smith and one of his co-stars back in the day. He and Janet Hubert – who originated the role of Vivian Banks – were engaged in a feud for years following her exit from the show. Both actors ultimately squashed that beef, however, and Smith is now recalling a “horrible” mistake he made while working with Hubert all those years ago.
Will Smith has been incredibly candid about his former conflicts with Janet Hubert over the years and, during a recent interview, he added some more thoughts. The Oscar winner was recently interviewed for a new episode of Vice’s Black Comedy in America, for which People had a preview. When asked about his past issues with Hubert, Smith admitted that a lot of that animosity came down to an aspect of her work that he didn’t realize until later on:
I made a horrible error and misjudgment of her value and power and beauty to the show. I horribly underestimated what she was for me at that point in my life.
According to the now-56-year-old Bad Boys star, he didn’t realize just how important his co-star’s role on the show was. The Cats alum’s role as “Aunt Viv” was and remains a praised aspect of the beloved sitcom. Ms. Hubert’s witty, loving and no-nonsense approach to the character contributed some of the best moments on the earlier seasons of Fresh Prince. Among her most iconic moments on the show is Season 2’s “The Big Four-Oh,” during which her character performed a dance routine that’s since gone viral.
Janet Hubert played Vivian Banks during the NBC comedy’s first three seasons from 1990 to 1993. Following the third season (during which she was pregnant), she was offered a new contract that she didn’t think was fair for her. While that was the true reason Hubert stopped playing Viv, many long alleged that she was fired from the show following on-set “tension” with Will Smith. The actress was subsequently succeeded in the role of Vivian by Daphne Maxwell Reid, who played the character for the remainder of the sitcom’s six-season run. Both Hubert and Smith reunited for the series’ reunion special in 2020, during which they had a heart-to-heart and reconciled.
The Independence Day star isn’t the only member of the Fresh Prince cast who’s given the Sweet Magnolias actress her flowers. Ashley Banks actress Tatyana Ali praised her on-screen mother as well shortly after seeing her again during the reunion special. Ali viewed her co-star with a “spotlight,” given that she was a beautiful Black woman who was able to perform on such a large screen. Furthermore, Ali mentioned that as a Black child, it was impactful for her to see and work alongside someone with such grace and talent.
As a longtime fan of the Will Smith-led series, I can honestly say that Janet Hubert more than deserves all of the love she has and continues to receive. It’s also wonderful that she and Will Smith have settled their differences and that Smith is fully aware of his co-star’s impact on the show and his own life. They’ve both made positive contributions to the culture and, together, they contributed to one of the great Black sitcoms of the ‘90s.
Stream all six seasons of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air now using a Max subscription. You can also use that membership to stream the reunion special.
