Peacock’s Bel-Air Trailer Is The Fresh Prince Reboot You Never Knew You Needed

You know the Banks family, but not like this.

The trailer for the dramatic retelling of The Prince Pince of Bel-Air is finally here and it’s everything a dark twisted take should be. Bel-Air, the reboot of the Will Smith ’90s sitcom will debut its first three episodes on Peacock on Super Bowl Sunday (February 13th) with the first three episodes at launch and new episodes released weekly, with subsequent new episodes being released weekly on the streamer.

Set in modern-day America, Peacock’s new one-hour drama series imagines the beloved sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air through a new, dramatic take on Will’s complicated journey from the streets of West Philadelphia to the gated mansions of Bel-Air. As these two worlds collide, Will reckons with the power of second chances while navigating the conflicts, emotions, and biases of a world far different from the only one he’s ever known.  

“This time will try to make you forget who you are and where you came from. Don’t let it do that,” a character warns Jabari Banks’ Will at the start of the trailer.

As we’re introduced to the Bel-Air versions of these classic characters, it’s clear some key changes have been made. For starters, Will doesn’t crack any jokes about this much trimmer version of Uncle Phil. Meanwhile, “house manager” Geoffrey seems like less of a wise-cracking butler and more of the leader of the house and keeper of secrets. And there’s Carlton… with swagger?

Judging by the tone, it took more than “one little fight” to scare Will’s mom into sending him to Bel-Air this time around. The trailer includes a quick shot of a bloody brawl that ends with Will in handcuffs. “And now some bad man from Philly wants to deal with you,” Geoffrey says.

Bel-Air stars Jabari Banks as Will, Adrian Holmes as Uncle Phil, Cassandra Freeman as Aunt Viv, Olly Sholotan as Carlton, Coco Jones as Hilary, Akira Akbar as Ashley, Jimmy Akingbola as Geoffrey, Jordan L. Jones as Jazz and Simone Joy Jones as Lisa. 

The series is based on Morgan Cooper’s viral fan film Bel-Air, which dropped in 2019 and lit the internet on fire.  In this incredible video HERE, Will Smith surprised Jabari Banks after landing the role of a lifetime.  The series was picked up for two seasons.   

The show, based on Morgan Cooper’s viral video that imagined a dramatic version of the iconic sitcom, is co-written and directed by Cooper, who is also co-executive producer on the project. Chris Collins is showrunner and executive producer, as well as Cooper’s co-writer.

While Smith is executive producing via Westbrook Studios along with Quincy Jones, Benny Medina and original series creators Andy and Susan Borowitz. Miguel Melendez and Westbrook Studios’ Terence Carter will also executive produce. Bel-Air comes from Westbrook Studios and Universal Television. UTV was the studio behind the original series as well.

Super Bowl LVI will be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA and will be presented live beginning at 1 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock and Telemundo. Check out the trailer above and the gallery below for a closer look at the series.

T.J. Brady and Rasheed Newson, Executive Producers and Co-Showrunners had this to say about the upcoming series, “At its heart, Bel-Air is a coming-of-age story that celebrates the strength and love of the Black family. We have stayed true to the original premise of the legacy series – Will’s life is turned upside down after he is forced to leave West Philly and lands in Bel-Air with its gated mansions and wealth, however, our new series brings Will and the Banks family into the world as we know it now. It’s been incredible to bring these iconic characters to life when you tap them into the cultural pulse of our time. The series was the fabric of so many of our upbringings, tied to memories and the joy of seeing ourselves represented on TV so it is important to us to pay respect to its legacy.”  

“During the development of Bel-Air, the most daunting question was: Could we find a young actor who’d be able to step into the role of Will Smith? Well, did we ever find him. His name is Jabari Banks and he won our hearts in the same way he won this role. Our creative team, including Will Smith, recognized that Jabari embodied the talent, charisma, and sheer swagger necessary to make this iconic role his own.”