Peacock and Will Smith have officially announced the lead actor of its upcoming The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reboot — West Philadelphia native and songwriter, singer, rapper and basketball player Jabari Banks.
Smith gave the news to Banks himself via video call, the young actor spinning around in his chair in surprise. “I’m ready. I’m so ready, y’all. I’m ready to bite down,” he said, further explaining that his dad first sent him a link to the news of the reboot and that his agent sent him the casting call two months after. Banks also shared an old photo of him from high school where he and his friends dressed up as the cast of Fresh Prince, adding, “The way this show has impacted me and my life… It’s incredible to hear you say that.”
BEL-AIR will be a modern take on the ’90s sitcom and will be reworked as a dramatic, one-hour series. Morgan Cooper, whose reimagined fan trailer brought the reboot to life, will be directing, co-writing and co-executive producing alongside Will Smith, Terence Carter, James Lassiter, Miguel Melendez, Malcolm Spellman, Quincy Jones, Benny Medina and Andy and Susan Borowitz.
Stay tuned for an official trailer and release date for BEL-AIR.
Elsewhere in entertainment, a film about Dennis Rodman’s 48 hours in Vegas is in the works.
