Will Smith and Matt Damon came together to work on the movie The Legend of Bagger Vance. Damon played the role of Captain Rannulph Junuh, who learns golf from Will Smith’s character Bagger Vance. The movie was released on the big screen on 3 November 2000. The sports drama was packed with inspiration, emotions, and drama.
The 54-year-old actor’s character was loved by the audiences, and Smith garnered a lot of appreciation for his character. But, there was one filmmaker who was not happy that the Men In Black actor worked in this movie.
Spike Lee grilled Will Smith for working in The Legend of Bagger Vance
Spike Lee, the director who delivered some of the biggest hit movies, slammed Will Smith when he was a part of a panel. As Lee was one of the members of the Harvard Panel, the 66-year-old director questioned why the Bad Boys actor said yes to working on Robert Redford’s movie. The Malcolm X actor wasn’t averse to Redford or the other lead actor in the movie, Matt Damon. He objected to the film’s plot, which painted a rosy picture of race relations in the Depression-era South while the truth was quite the contrary. While talking about the King Richards actor, the director said,
“With all that going on, why are you [expletive] trying to teach Matt Damon a golf swing?”
During an interview, Smith revealed why he said yes to working in The Legend of Bagger Vance. The I Am Legend actor stated that he found the story of the movie very intriguing.
Will Smith said The Legend of Bagger Vance was a great opportunity for him
During an interview, Smith recalled how a small conversation with Steven Spielberg made him realize something about his acting career. The Emancipation actor recalls the time when he asked the Jaws director why he had never cast him in any of his movies. While talking about his chat with Spielberg, Smith said,
“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. … But it clicked in my mind. The persona I created had become too big for the stories I want to tell. I had started to overshadow the characters I play. People see me on screen and go, ‘Oh, look, it’s Will Smith.”
He further added,
“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.”
Smith’s character, Bagger Vance, was very different from the characters he had previously performed. The actor chose to be a part of this film because he wanted to explore various sides of himself as an actor.
Source: ABC News; Cheatsheet
