Will Smith has shared the first pictures from the highly awaited Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air reunion special, appearing to confirm the end of his feud with an original cast member.
The Hollywood actor sat down with his co-stars exactly 30 years since the beloved comedy first aired in the US.
Smith has been reunited with Tatyana Ali (Ashley), Karyn Parsons (Hilary), Joseph Marcell (Geoffrey), Daphne Maxwell Reid (Vivian) and Alfonso Ribeiro (Carlton), as well as DJ Jazzy Jeff, who had a recurring role in the show.
James Avery, who played Smith’s on-screen uncle Phil Banks in The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, died in 2013.
Smith posted a smiling selfie of the cast, promising a “real Banks Family Reunion”. He added: “RIP James.”
And in a second picture, Smith is seen smiling while seated opposite Janet Hubert, who played aunt Vivian for the Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air’s first three seasons before being replaced by Reid amid reports of a feud with the show’s star.
Speaking in 2011, Hubert told TMZ she blamed Smith for her departure and ruled out a reunion.
“He is still an egomaniac and has not grown up,” she said. “This constant reunion thing will never ever happen in my lifetime unless there is an apology, which he doesn’t know the word.”
And Smith is reported to have said in an interview in the 1990s that Hubert “wanted the show to be The Aunt Viv of Bel Air Show”.
For the one-off special, Smith and Hubert had an “emotional reunion and a candid conversation,” according to HBO.
Filming for the programme took place on the set of the Banks’ family home on Thursday. It is due to arrive on the HBO Max streaming platform in November.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air starred Smith as a fictionalised version of himself, a streetwise teenager who is sent to live with his wealthy aunt and uncle in their Bel Air mansion after getting into a fight in his hometown of Philadelphia.
It ran for six seasons from 1990 to 1996. HBO Max is also planning on bringing a Friends reunion to the service, though it has faced repeated delays due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The HBO Max streaming platform is not available in the UK and no UK date for the Fresh Prince reunion has been announced.