Will Smith Reacts to Viral Uncle Phil Comparison Photo

He also responded to another viral meme that brings to mind a look he sported on a Fresh Prince of Bel-Air episode

By Corinne Heller Jul 21, 2017 3:38 PMTags

Is Will Smith turning into Uncle Phil? If he is, he seems to be cool with it. 

In March, Smith shared a GoPro video of himself bungee jumping. The video and screenshots of it went viral due to the fact that with his gray facial hair and shaved head, he is the spitting image of the late James Avery, who played his uncle on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the '90s.

A Huffington Post reporter asked Smith about the comparisons at the Bright press conference at San Diego Comic-Con 2017 Thursday.

"I don't know if you saw, but a lot of fans isolated one moment where they said you reminded them of..." the reporter began.

"Uncle Phil!" said Smith. 

photos
Will Smith's Craziest Looks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
YouTube; Getty Images

Avery passed away at age 68 in 2014. His Fresh Prince co-stars all paid tribute to him online.

"Some of my greatest lessons in Acting, Living and being a respectable human being came through James Avery," Smith wrote. "Every young man needs an Uncle Phil. Rest in Peace."

Anthony Harvey/Getty Images

In recent days, Smith sparked more Fresh Prince nostalgia when fans drew comparisons between the mustached look he sports in the upcoming Netflix film Bright and the one he has on an episode of the sitcom in which he dons a fake mustache while pretending to be his cousin Ashley's father while speaking to her teacher.

"The mustache! I hated that mustache," Smith said at the press conference, according to the Huffington Post. "That was so bad."