Will Smith was at the pinnacle of his career, but things got messy in the blink of an eye after he slapped famous comedian Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars. He won the Best Actor award at the event, but his reputation got tainted in Hollywood after the incident. Smith is a legendary actor who has done dozens of blockbuster films in his storied career and collaborated with many creative visionaries on fascinating projects.
The actor has built a rich epic filmography that speaks volumes about his journey in showbiz. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star once claimed that after achieving enormous success in his career, he started to overshadow his on-screen characters, so he decided to do small-scale projects that allowed him to explore varied roles.
Will Smith Reveals What Led Him To Work in Small Budget Films
Will Smith is an entertaining actor who often leaves fans in awe of him. During his multi decade reign as one of the leading stars, he has steadily worked hard to earn respect and love from the audience. Smith has played many intriguing, unhinged, complex, and challenging roles proving his versatility as an actor.
The Hitch movie star once revealed that it started to bother him when he once asked director Steven Spielberg at a party why he never hired him in his films, to which the filmmaker replied that he is too big for his movies.
In a candid interview, the actor shared that, at the time, he didn’t understand his reference. Nevertheless, he later realized that he might begin to overshadow his characters because of his incredible star power.
“I ran into Steven Spielberg at a party, and I jokingly asked him why he never hired me for his movies. Steven said, ‘Oh, you’re too big for my movies.’ I laughed it off. I said, ‘What the heck is that supposed to mean? Am I too tall?’ But it clicked in my mind. The persona I created had become too big for the stories I wanted to tell. I had started to overshadow the characters I played. People see me on screen and go, ‘Oh, look, it’s Will Smith,” the actor said.
Will Smith claimed that after the incident, he started to explore different roles, which involved taking risks to star in small-budgeted projects. In 2000, the actor starred in the American sports film, The Legend of Bagger Vance, which received mixed reviews but allowed him to probe his cinematic skills.
Will Smith Opened Up About Working in The Legend of Bagger Vance
In a tell-interview, Will Smith opened up about his experience working in the small-budgeted Robert Redford-directed 2000 American sports film The Legend of Bagger Vance. The actor took a chance by starring in this film since he wanted to explore different roles. Smith said,
“I thought Bagger Vance was a great opportunity for me to just turn it off. This is the first time in my career that I completely surrendered all my instincts and my natural desire to bend scenes into the Will Smith thing. It was a really scary place to be in.”
The actor continued, “It’s frightening to feel in a scene that this persona you’ve created is trying to crawl out, dying for you to do something or say something that is funny, something that will shake up a scene and say, ‘Hey, notice me!”
Will Smith starrer The Legend of Bagger Vance received mixed reviews upon its released and earned over $40 million at the global box office.
Source: The Morning Call
