50 facts about actor, producer, rapper, and songwriter Will Smith

Smith turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix in favor of Wild Wild West. Learn 50 facts about actor Will Smith.

1. His full name is Willard Carroll "Will" Smith, Jr.

2. He is not only an actor but also a producer, rapper, and songwriter.

3. He has enjoyed success in television, film, and music.

4. Smith has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, two Academy Awards, and has won four Grammy Awards.

5. In the late 1980s, Smith achieved modest fame as a rapper under the name The Fresh Prince.

6. In 1990, his popularity increased dramatically when he starred in the popular television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The show ran for six seasons on NBC and has been syndicated consistently on various networks since then.

7. After the series ended, Smith moved from television to film, and ultimately starred in numerous blockbuster films.

8. He is the only actor to have eight consecutive films gross over $100 million in the domestic box office,

9. He also has eleven consecutive films gross over $150 million internationally, and eight consecutive films in which he starred open at the number one spot in the domestic box office tally.

10. Smith is ranked as the most bankable star worldwide by Forbes.

11. As of 2014, 17 of the 21 films in which he has had leading roles have accumulated worldwide gross earnings of over $100 million each, five taking in over $500 million each in global box office receipts.

12. He has received Best Actor Oscar nominations for Ali and The Pursuit of Happyness.

13. Smith was born in West Philadelphia.

14. He was born to Caroline, a Philadelphia school board administrator, and Willard Carroll Smith, Sr., a refrigeration engineer.

15. He grew up in West Philadelphia's Wynnefield neighborhood.

16. Was raised Baptist.

17. He has three siblings, sister Pamela, who is four years older, and twins Harry and Ellen, who are three years younger.

18. His parents separated when he was 13, but did not actually divorce until around 2000.

19. According to Smith, "My mother, who worked for the School Board of Philadelphia, had a friend who was the admissions officer at MIT. I had pretty high SAT scores and they needed black kids, so I probably could have gotten in. But I had no intention of going to college."

20. Smith started as the MC of the hip-hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, with his childhood friend Jeffrey "DJ Jazzy Jeff" Townes as turntablist and producer, as well as Ready Rock C (Clarence Holmes) as the human beat box.

21. The trio was known for performing humorous, radio-friendly songs, most notably "Parents Just Don't Understand" and "Summertime".

22. The trio gained critical acclaim and won the first Grammy awarded in the Rap category (1988).

23. Smith was nearly bankrupt in 1990, when the NBC television network signed him to a contract and built a sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, around him. The show was successful and began his acting career.

24. Smith set for himself the goal of becoming "the biggest movie star in the world", studying box office successes' common characteristics.

25. Smith's first major roles were in the drama Six Degrees of Separation and the action film Bad Boys in which he starred opposite Martin Lawrence.

26. In 1996, Smith starred as part of an ensemble cast in Roland Emmerich's Independence Day. The film was a massive blockbuster, becoming the second highest grossing film in history at the time and establishing Smith as a prime box office draw.

27. He later struck gold again in the summer of 1997 alongside Tommy Lee Jones in the summer hit Men in Black playing Agent J. In 1998, Smith starred with Gene Hackman in Enemy of the State.

28. He turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix in favor of Wild Wild West.

29. Despite the disappointment of Wild Wild West, Smith has said that he harbors no regrets about his decision, asserting that Keanu Reeves's performance as Neo was superior to what Smith himself would have achieved, although in interviews subsequent to the release of Wild Wild West he stated that he "made a mistake on Wild Wild West. That could have been better."

30. In 2005, Smith was entered into the Guinness Book of World Records for attending three premieres in a 24-hour time span.

31. On December 10, 2007, Smith was honored at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Smith left an imprint of his hands and feet outside the world-renowned theater in front of many fans.

32. Smith starred in the film I Am Legend, released December 14, 2007. Despite marginally positive reviews, its opening was the largest ever for a film released in the United States during December. Smith himself has said that he considers the film to be "aggressively unique".

33. On December 1, 2008, TV Guide reported that Smith was selected as one of America's top ten most fascinating people of 2008 for a Barbara Walters ABC special that aired on December 4, 2008.

34. Also in 2008, Will Smith was in his own superhero movie Hancock.

35. Men in Black III opened on May 25, 2012 with Smith again reprising his role as Agent J. This was his first major starring role in four years.

36. Smith and his son Jaden played father and son in two productions: the 2006 biographical drama The Pursuit of Happyness, and the science fiction film After Earth, which was released on May 31, 2013.

37. Smith starred opposite Margot Robbie in the romance drama Focus. He played Nicky Spurgeon, a veteran con artist who takes a young, attractive woman under his wing. Focus was released on February 27, 2015.

38. Smith was set to star in the sci-fi thriller Brilliance, an adaptation of Marcus Sakey's novel of the same name scripted by Jurassic Park writer David Koepp. But he left the project.

39. Smith gave $1.3 million to charities in 2007, of which $450,000 went to two Christian ministries, and $122,500 went to three Scientology organizations; the remaining beneficiaries included "a Los Angeles mosque, other Christian-based schools and churches, and [.....] the Yitzhak Rabin Memorial Center in Israel."

40. Smith and his wife have also founded a private elementary school in Calabasas, California, the New Village Leadership Academy.

41. Smith married Sheree Zampino in 1992.

42. They had one son, Trey Smith.

43. Smith and Zampino divorced in 1995.

44. Trey appeared in his father's music video for the 1998 single "Just the Two of Us".

45. Trey also acted in two episodes of the sitcom All of Us, and has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and on the David Blaine: Real or Magic TV special.

46. Smith married actress Jada Koren Pinkett in 1997.

47. Together they have two children: Jaden Christopher Syre Smith and Willow Camille Reign Smith.

48. Smith and his brother Harry own Treyball Development Inc., a Beverly Hills-based company named after Trey.

49. Smith and his family reside in Los Angeles, California.

50. Smith was consistently listed in Fortune Magazine's "Richest 40" list of the forty wealthiest Americans under the age of 40.