It’s been 13 years since the former Fresh Prince made the leap from small-screen silliness to big screen cred with Six Degrees of Separation, a serious dramatic departure that cast him as a troubled con man. In all that time, Will Smith has only had one other role that truly tested his dramatic mettle, portraying legendary boxer Muhammad Ali in the Michael Mann biopic. Still, there was little doubt that he’d be the perfect actor to star as Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness, the true story of a single dad who battled homelessness and hopelessness to become a multi-millionaire stockbroker. The film features Smith’s son, Jaden, making his film debut as Gardner’s boy, and finds the rapper-turned-actor delivering one of the finest performances of his career. We recently attended a press conference at New York’s Regency Hotel, where Smith discussed everything from working with his son and the American dream to the things parents just don’t understand...

Jaden’s not here today?

No, not today.  We did Oprah the other day, and Jaden and my daughter Willow were both on the show. Willow was on the show because she wasn’t about to let Jaden be on Oprah [by himself].  During the show I looked at him, and Jaden is so unaffected.  He wants to act and play videogames. I was watching the two of them and I’m like, “I got Johnny Depp and Paris Hilton.”  

Have you thought about what happened with Tatum O’ Neal and Ryan O’ Neal?  She won the Oscar, and it ruined their relationship!

(Laughs)  We were probably about eight weeks into shooting and he’s such a natural, nailing moment after moment, and I told him, “It’s a good thing you’re my son,” because I’d been leaning into his close-ups and everything. But it’s a beautiful thing.

Did you always consider having your son play the part?

No, not at all.  One night, Jada and I were laying in the bed and he comes crawling in between us while we’re reading a script and says, “Tell me the story, Daddy.” I tell him and he says, “Pshaw, I could do that!” We do shorts around the house, so he’s familiar with the process, so Jada took him in the next week to set up an audition.  There were 100 kids, then 50 and 20, and he was still there. It got down to about 10 and I’m thinking, I might need to pay attention over here. Gabrielle Muccino fell in love with him.  (Impersonating the Italian director) “I love your baby, Will!  I must have your baby!”  I was like, “Hold on. Let me get clear about what you’re asking.” (Laughs) Continued on page 2 »