After The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ended in 1996, Smith began a successful solo music career while simultaneously
starring in a series of films. The first two films were hugely successful summer blockbusters: Independence Day (1996), in
which he played a fearless and confident fighter pilot, and Men in Black (1997), where he played
the comic and confident Agent J against Tommy Lee Jones's deadpan Agent K. Smith's acting in Men in Black won critical praise.
The two films established Smith's commercial reputation as a bankable star whose appeal across age, race, and gender lines
could "open" a film at the box office.
Lead roles
in Enemy of the State, Wild Wild West, Ali, Men in Black II, Bad Boys II and I, Robot then followed.
His most recent film is 2005's Hitch. Smith was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of the boxer
Muhammad Ali in Ali.
Smith also
released a string of hit singles, often associated with his most recent film, throughout the late 1990s. The most notable
of these were his #1 hit theme song "Men in Black," the #1 hit "Gettin' Jiggy
Wit It" (which made jiggy a catchphrase for a while in 1998), and a cover of "Just the Two of Us,"
an affectionate message to his young son. His first two solo albums went platinum, but his third, on Columbia Records, was
a sales disappointment compared to his past efforts, and after a quick Greatest Hits release that was almost not advertised
at all, he was dropped by the label. He signed a recording contract with Interscope Records and released the successful Lost
& Found in 2005. The album was propelled solely on the smash hit single, "Switch," which appealed
to the mainstream ala "Summertime." The single stayed atop the charts for months and returned Smith to the forefront of Hip
Hop.
Also, on
February 6, 2005 he appeared at Super Bowl XXXIX most likely to root on his hometown team, the Philadelphia Eagles.
On July 2,
2005, Smith served as host for the Live 8 concert in his native Philadelphia before an enormous crowd, and later performed
a set with DJ Jazzy Jeff.
On June 28,
2005, he and his wife (Jada Pinkett-Smith) hosted the BET Awards '05 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, CA
Smith married
Sharee Zampino in 1992. They had a son, Willard Christopher III, also known as "Trey", but divorced
in 1995. Smith married actress Jada Pinkett in 1997. Together they have two children: Jaden Christopher Syre (born 1998) and
Willow Camille Reign (born 2000). Along with his brother, Harry Smith, he owns Treyball Development Inc., a Beverly Hills-based
company named after his first son. He has been consistently listed in Fortune Magazine's "Richest 40" list of the forty wealthiest
Americans under the age of 40.
Will Smith
has been criticized for his lip service to his home town of Philadelphia, PA. Several of his songs talk about parts of Philadelphia
and the surrounding areas. While he has spoken over the years about how much he loves the city and how much he wants to give
back, none of his proposed ventures in the city of Philadelphia have ever been adopted. He has proposed opening a restaurant,
several upscale bars, and a community center in Philadelphia which have never seen development.
It was rumored
that production on Men in Black 3 would begin sometime in 2006, with the film set for release in
2007, a decade after the first film, Men in Black. However, in a recent edition of Variety, Smith denied these claims[citation
needed].
Will Smith
is also planned to star in a feature film remake television series of It Takes a Thief.
He recently
bought a vacation home in Stockholm, Sweden.
It is stated
that Will Smith will star in the sequel to Enemy of the State
He had to
learn how to solve a Rubik's Cube in Pursuit of Happyness, and was taught by cube champions Tyson Mao and his brother
