It all started six years ago when Morgan Cooper premiered a trailer for a dramatic version of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and a full series based on that premise, Bel-Air, debuted on Peacock in February 2022. Since then, the Banks family and those in their orbit have been through plenty. After four seasons, the show is wrapping up its stories, sending its young characters off to unknown futures and closing the door on this chapter of their story.
Awards Buzz had the chance to speak with the entire cast about how they’re feeling about the show ending and what they’ll take with them of their characters to subsequent roles and projects.
Jabari Banks has clearly loved playing Will but doesn’t think the show needs to continue past this end point:
“The show is called Bel-Air, and we’re leaving Bel-Air. I think we did something really great for four years. Putting it down is important. I remember Will visited the set – Will Smith, the real guy – and I remember he was talking about the original Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and he was like, we probably should have stopped at season four or five. Once a thing is really good, everyone is like, more, more, more, more. But it’s like, there’s something beautiful in the scarcity of what we have and the greatness that you give out. I would love to play Will again in some capacity, but maybe not in another series or spinoff.”
Adrian Holmes, who plays Uncle Phil, had nothing but positivity to share about how people have received his performance and what that will teach him for whatever comes next:
“Moving forward, I just want to play and find characters that are impactful, that move me, that I’m able to inspire and make people feel something and, I always say, be the best version of themselves. If you can do that and you can make one person dream bigger, walk taller, then I feel I’ve done my job. Moving forward, that’s what I want to do.”
Cassandra Freeman, who plays Aunt Viv, welcomed a specific character change that allowed her character to inhabit a different world:
“I think the whole visual arts thing is just so surprising, from the beginning. To take her out of the whole dance thing and instead have her see life as an artist, I so love that they did that. I think it’s so timely for where we are in the world of visual arts. That meant a lot to me.”
Showrunner Carla Banks Waddles shared how this final season has been a chance to incorporate many plot points and character arcs:
“We got to have a lot of discussions in the writers’ room, knowing this is the final season. So guys, this is it. All the stories we wanted to tell that we didn’t have time to tell, or stuff that was on the board from previous seasons that we couldn’t fit in. What was the wish list? Even talking to the cast, is there anything about your character or your story that you didn’t get to tell or you still feel is left to say? Just bringing it all to the table to try to land it in a satisfying way. I felt like we did it. I feel really proud of all the stories we got to tell this season. It was challenging, but I felt like everybody was serviced. All the stories were serviced.
Watch the videos above to hear more from Banks, Olly Sholotan, Simone Joy Jones, Holmes, Jimmy Akingbola, Jordan L. Jones, Cassandra Freeman, Coco Jones, Akira Akbar, and Waddles.
New episodes of Bel-Air premiere weekly on Mondays on Peacock through the series finale on December 8th.
