Will Smith Reflects on ‘Error’ of His Ways in Infamous ‘Fresh Prince’ Feud

Will Smith opened up on the most recent episode of Vice’s Black Comedy in America about his infamous feud with former Fresh Prince of Bel Air co-star Janet Hubert. Hubert played Vivian Banks, a.k.a. Aunt Viv, on the original sitcom’s first three seasons before being replaced by Daphne Maxwell Reid due to “creative differences” with Smith.

During his new Vice interview, Smith admitted he “made a horrible error” during his time working with Hubert, saying that he made a “misjudgdment of her value and power and beauty to the show.”

"I horribly underestimated what she was for me at that point in my life,” Smith said.

Both Smith and Hubert took swipes at each other in the press in the years following her departure. At one point, People reported, Smith told an Atlanta radio station that Hubert "wanted the show to be The Aunt Viv of Bel-Air Show."

But in 2020, during an HBO special honoring Fresh Prince’s 30th anniversary, Smith and Hubert made amends, which culminated in an emotional embrace between the two. In 2021, Hubert told People that she and Smith now share “a very good relationship” and often keep in touch.

"We text each other back and forth all the time," she said. "I meant it with all my heart when I hugged him, because I saw that little boy, that little 21-year-old boy. Had we had an opportunity to talk back then, I think this would have never happened."

You can check out episodes of Vice’s Black Comedy in America here. The Fresh Prince of Bel Air is streaming on Peacock.