The Willennium may have started nearly a quarter of a century ago, but Will Smith has been dominating on screen since the early 1990s. The Academy Award-winning star has been a blockbuster juggernaut with a commanding presence on screen, dabbling in anything and everything. Serious fare like "Concussion," edgy superhero stories like "Hancock" and "Suicide Squad," action-packed dramas like "Enemy of the State," sci-fi thrillers like "I, Robot," musicals like "Aladdin," and plenty of goofy nonsense like "Shark Tale" and "Wild Wild West" have all let Big Willy Style flex his acting muscles and show that he truly is a jack of all trades. From his humble beginnings in the ensemble piece "Where the Day Takes You" to the recently announced "Bad Boys: Ride or Die," Smith is one of Hollywood's most prolific and profitable performers. And fortunately, he's also one of the best. It's time to get jiggy wit'...
- 4/2/2024
- by BJ Colangelo
- Slash Film
When Will Smith was ready to turn down the role of Agent J in 1997’s “Men in Black,” executive producer Steven Spielberg decided to take matters into his own hands. During a recent appearance on Kevin Hart’s “Hart to Heart” talk show (via Insider), Smith told the story of Spielberg sending a helicopter to bring him in for a meeting in which Spielberg questioned Smith’s apprehension over “Men in Black.”
It all started with Smith not wanting to make another alien-centric movie after 1996’s “Independence Day,” his first bonafide blockbuster. James Lassiter, Smith’s former manager, urged Smith to take the role of Agent J. According to Smith, Lassiter was “the arbiter of taste” for his acting career.
“In the heyday, the 10 movies I made at the top of my career, [James] was choosing the films,” Smith said. “He just had an eye. I didn’t want to make ‘Pursuit of Happyness.
It all started with Smith not wanting to make another alien-centric movie after 1996’s “Independence Day,” his first bonafide blockbuster. James Lassiter, Smith’s former manager, urged Smith to take the role of Agent J. According to Smith, Lassiter was “the arbiter of taste” for his acting career.
“In the heyday, the 10 movies I made at the top of my career, [James] was choosing the films,” Smith said. “He just had an eye. I didn’t want to make ‘Pursuit of Happyness.
- 8/4/2023
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
Beginning with the publication of Whitley Streiber's book "Communion: A True Story" in 1987, alien abduction lore began to spread in earnest through the minds of the public. Streiber's book, and the growing popularity of alien imagery, were part of a cultural obsession with extraterrestrial kidnappings which broke open in earnest with the debut of "The X-Files" in 1993. Embedded in the wave of pop alien lore were tales of Men in Black, sinister government agents who wore black suits, ties, and hats, and who would arrive at the doorsteps of alien abductees, hypnotically intoning that they needed to keep their abduction a secret.
By 1997, when Barry Sonnenfeld's hit film "Men in Black" was released in theaters, such previously staid and hushed lore was transformed into broad comedy. "Men in Black" was about, essentially, Earth's immigration office, assembled to document space alien immigrants visiting or moving to our planet. Agents K...
By 1997, when Barry Sonnenfeld's hit film "Men in Black" was released in theaters, such previously staid and hushed lore was transformed into broad comedy. "Men in Black" was about, essentially, Earth's immigration office, assembled to document space alien immigrants visiting or moving to our planet. Agents K...
- 10/29/2022
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Following the smashing success of "Independence Day," Will Smith was red hot. The former "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" star had successfully undergone the transformation from television star to film star, a hurdle many fail to overcome. Smith's next big project was "Men in Black," a sci-fi adventure film loosely based on the comic book series by Lowell Cunningham. Smith was to be the handsome but slightly out of his element leading man who would play alongside a more austere veteran actor. That co-star turned out to be Tommy Lee Jones.
At first glance, the combination of Smith and Jones seems like it could have been a slightly combustible one. Tommy Lee Jones is a serious, soft-spoken professional who had been known to have issues with co-stars. While Jones was working with Jim Carrey on 1995's "Batman Forever," Carrey reportedly said Jones told him to his face that he hated him.
At first glance, the combination of Smith and Jones seems like it could have been a slightly combustible one. Tommy Lee Jones is a serious, soft-spoken professional who had been known to have issues with co-stars. While Jones was working with Jim Carrey on 1995's "Batman Forever," Carrey reportedly said Jones told him to his face that he hated him.
- 9/14/2022
- by Matt Rainis
- Slash Film
In the science fiction action-comedy "Men in Black II," Agent J (Will Smith) lures his former mentor from the original, Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones), out of retirement five years after the events of the previous film to help track down the mysterious Light of Zartha before it's captured by Serleena, an evil alien from the planet Kyloth. The 2002 sequel was yet another one of Will Smith's summer blockbuster hits, breaking box office records previously held by Smith-starred movies "Independence Day" and the first "Men in Black."
The film, however, didn't achieve the same critical acclaim as the 1997 original. The...
The post Barry Sonnenfeld Has Some Regrets About The Making Of Men In Black II appeared first on /Film.
The film, however, didn't achieve the same critical acclaim as the 1997 original. The...
The post Barry Sonnenfeld Has Some Regrets About The Making Of Men In Black II appeared first on /Film.
- 7/9/2022
- by J. Gabriel Ware
- Slash Film
If Steven Spielberg had his way, then “Men in Black” would have been a very important stepping stone in the career of…Chris O’Donnell.
The superstar filmmaker, who was tasked with producing the sci-fi comedy that opened July 2, 1997, thought that the role of Agent J was tailor-made for the rising actor. Although the idea of O’Donnell teaming up with Tommy Jones may seem ludicrous now, it made sense at the time. After all, O’Donnell’s star was at its zenith in the mid-1990s, propelled by buzzy turns in “Scent of a Woman” and “Mad Love,” and not yet brought crashing back to Earth by the disaster that was “Batman & Robin.”
However, the film’s director Barry Sonnenfeld disagreed that the wholesome, hunky O’Donnell was right for the youthful agent. Over a Spielberg-mandated dinner with O’Donnell in which he was intended to convince the actor to sign on,...
The superstar filmmaker, who was tasked with producing the sci-fi comedy that opened July 2, 1997, thought that the role of Agent J was tailor-made for the rising actor. Although the idea of O’Donnell teaming up with Tommy Jones may seem ludicrous now, it made sense at the time. After all, O’Donnell’s star was at its zenith in the mid-1990s, propelled by buzzy turns in “Scent of a Woman” and “Mad Love,” and not yet brought crashing back to Earth by the disaster that was “Batman & Robin.”
However, the film’s director Barry Sonnenfeld disagreed that the wholesome, hunky O’Donnell was right for the youthful agent. Over a Spielberg-mandated dinner with O’Donnell in which he was intended to convince the actor to sign on,...
- 6/30/2022
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
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