Bel-Air is an American drama television series developed by Morgan Cooper, Malcolm Spellman, TJ Brady, and Rasheed Newson. It is a reimagined version of the sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and is based on Cooper's short fan film of the same name. It stars Jabari Banks, Adrian Holmes, Cassandra Freeman, Olly Sholotan, Coco Jones, Akira Akbar, Jimmy Akingbola, Jordan L. Jones, and Simone Joy Jones. The series premiered on Peacock on February 13, 2022.[2]
Bel-Air | |
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Genre | Drama |
Created by | Andy Borowitz & Susan Borowitz |
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Developed by | Morgan Cooper & Malcolm Spellman & TJ Brady & Rasheed Newson |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 10 |
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Running time | 46–60 minutes |
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Original network | Peacock |
Original release | February 13, 2022 (2022-02-13) – present (present) |
The series follows Will Smith's complicated journey from the streets of West Philadelphia to the gated mansions of Bel-Air. This series dives into Racial tension, Culture shock, and Black excellence.
On March 10, 2019, Morgan Cooper uploaded Bel-Air to YouTube. The submission was a fan film, written and directed by him, in the form of a mock trailer for an updated and dramatic reimagining of the television sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.[5][6] Will Smith, who starred in the original sitcom as a fictionalized version of himself, heavily praised the fan film and expressed his interest in expanding the concept into a reboot, personally meeting with Cooper.[7][8] On August 11, 2020, the series was officially announced after being in the works for over a year. At the time, Netflix, HBO Max, and Peacock were bidding for the rights to the series.[9] On September 8, 2020, Peacock gave the series a two-season order under the title Bel-Air, with Westbrook Inc. and Universal Television producing. Smith and Cooper executive produce alongside Terence Carter, James Lassiter, Miguel Melendez, Malcolm Spellman, Quincy Jones, Benny Medina, Andy Borowitz, and Susan Borowitz.[10] An online premiere for the series was held on February 9, 2022, by Crown & Conquer.[11] The series premiered on Peacock on February 13, 2022, with its first three episodes.[2][12] Upon the streaming records announcement, it was reported that Anthony Sparks joined the series as an executive producer for the second season.[1] On October 13, 2022, it was announced that Carla Banks Waddles has been promoted to executive producer and showrunner for the second season, replacing TJ Brady & Rasheed Newson who were the showrunners for the first season. Banks Waddles was a co-executive producer for the first season.[13]
In August 2021, Smith surprised Jabari Banks with the news that Banks would star as the lead.[14][15] In September 2021, Adrian Holmes, Cassandra Freeman, Olly Sholotan, Coco Jones, Akira Akbar, Jimmy Akingbola, Jordan L. Jones, and Simone Joy Jones joined the cast as series regulars.[16] In January 2022, Karrueche Tran, Duane Martin, Joe Holt, April Parker Jones, SteVonté Hart, Scottie Thompson, and Charlie Hall in recurring roles.[17] In March 2022, it was reported that Daphne Maxwell Reid and Vernee Watson-Johnson guest starred in episode 9 on March 24.[4]
Principal photography was scheduled to take place in Los Angeles and Philadelphia.[16] On January 7, 2022, it was reported that the series had some positive COVID-19 tests on set, but production was not impacted.[18]
No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date [12] | |
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1 | "Dreams and Nightmares" | Morgan Cooper | Morgan Cooper & Malcolm Spellman & TJ Brady & Rasheed Newson | February 13, 2022 (2022-02-13) | |
Will Smith is a West Philadelphia straight-A student with a high chance of winning a college basketball scholarship. After a basketball game, he and friend Tray are insulted by Darnell and make a bet with local drug lord Rashad. Will and Tray win, but Darnell instigates a fight. Will clears the court by firing Tray's gun into the air and is arrested. Will's mother and her brother-in-law Philip Banks get him released and flown to Bel Air, Los Angeles to live with Philip. He hitches a ride with a local named Jazz and goes to a fundraiser for Phil's District Attorney campaign. Will is on good terms with his aunt Vivian and cousins Hilary and Ashley, but Philip worries he will ruin his campaign. Will flirts with Lisa, his cousin Carlton's ex-girlfriend. Will learns that Tray's in trouble and tries to return to Philadelphia; he's caught by house manager Geoffrey. He watches Carlton play lacrosse and flirts with Lisa again, and nearly starts a fight when Carlton's teammate Connor raps ethnic slurs. Later, Will catches Carlton sniffing Xanax and agrees to stay silent if he helps get Uncle Phil to ease up on him. They pretend to make peace and go to Connor's beach party. Will meets Lisa again and kisses her, and a jealous Carlton pushes Will into the pool. Will can't swim, so Lisa pulls him out, and he punches Connor and Carlton. | |||||
2 | "Keep Ya Head Up" | Carl Seaton | JaNeika James & JaSheika James | February 13, 2022 (2022-02-13) | |
Will gets a call from his mother that his friend Tray was shot. Will attends his first day at Bel-Air Academy and is humiliated in front of the entire Junior Class by Carlton. Uncle Phil is interviewed on a Radio Show by Big Boy and asked more questions about his personal life than political. Hilary gets an offer from Haute Magazine on the condition that she tone down her recipes and outfits. With the help of Jazz, Uncle Phil, and Tyler's advice, Will is able to get a spot on the basketball team, but while leaving campus his bag is searched and Connor planted cocaine in his bag. | |||||
3 | "Yamacraw" | Nick Copus | Yolonda Lawrence | February 13, 2022 (2022-02-13) | |
After what happened at school, Will has in-school suspension. However, Phil and Vivian discovers that the Principal didn't watch the tapes of who planted the drugs in Will's bag. After got things sorted out and returned to school, Phil invites Will to a crawfish boil event where his fraternity host. | |||||
4 | "Canvass" | Dale Stern | Nicole Delaney & Henry "Hank" Jones | February 17, 2022 (2022-02-17) | |
Phil convinces Hilary, Carlton, Will and Ashley to get fifty people to register to vote. He makes a deal with Carlton that if he doesn't make drama with Will, he'll get VIP seats to the Grand Prix at Monaco. Will discovers from Tray that Rashad now knows he's in Bel-Air, which leads to Geoffrey to help. He discovers from Hilary that Carlton made a deal with Phil which leads him to make a deal with Vivian that if he doesn't make drama with Carlton, they can fly Tray out for the weekend which she accepts. | |||||
5 | "PA to LA" | Tasha Smith | Ephraim Salaam & Rasheed Newson | February 24, 2022 (2022-02-24) | |
Tray visited Bel-Air, following the deal Will had with Vivian. At the Banks, the family supports Hilary by hosting an influencer event at the Bank's resistance. Tray's loyalty was put to test, as he shares Will's secret with Carlton, while tipsy at the dinner table. Carlton spoke with Phil, and confronted Will, with a new rule, or he would snitch on him. | |||||
6 | "The Strength to Smile" | Aurora Guerrero | TJ Brady & Paul Eriksen | March 3, 2022 (2022-03-03) | |
7 | "Payback's a B*tch" | Ava Berkofsky | Carla Banks Waddles | March 10, 2022 (2022-03-10) | |
8 | "No One Wins When The Family Feuds" | Sylvain White | JaNeika James & JaSheika James | March 17, 2022 (2022-03-17) | |
9 | "Can't Knock The Hustle" | Matthew A. Cherry | Malcolm Spellman & Rasheed Newson | March 24, 2022 (2022-03-24) | |
10 | "Where To?" | Dale Stern | Morgan Cooper & TJ Brady & Rasheed Newson | March 31, 2022 (2022-03-31) |
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 66% of 47 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The website's consensus reads, "Bel-Air replaces its predecessor's high spirits with a dour tone and an uneasy mix of realism, although there are signs that this reimagining can grow into a fresh new spin."[19] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 59 out of 100 based on 25 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[20]
On May 2, 2022, Peacock announced that Bel-Air is the most-streamed original series on the streaming service in which the series reached 8 million accounts to date.[1]
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