Tatyana Ali 'Bawled' After Filming with Actress Playing Her “Fresh Prince” Character: 'Heart Exploded' (Exclusive)
After reuniting for a Zumba class, on-screen siblings Tatyana Ali and Alfonso Ribeiro shared their thoughts with PEOPLE on the reimagining of their '90s sitcom
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(L-R) Tatyana Ali attends the National Hispanic Media Coalition Impact Gala on June 14, 2024, in Los Angelesin 2024; Ali as Ashley Banks in 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'Tatyana Ali had an emotional blast from the past while on the set of Peacock’s Bel-Air.
After reuniting with her on-screen brother Alfonso Ribeiro for a Zumba class, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air stars gush to PEOPLE about their adoration for Bel-Air, a dramatized version of their hit ‘90s sitcom.
Ali, 45, began her role as Ashley Banks in 1990 when she was 11. She bid farewell to the character when the original series ended in 1996 but nearly 30 years later, Ali found herself face-to-face with Ashley again.
In season 2 of Bel-Air, Ali took on a recurring role as Mrs. Hughes, Ashley’s English literature teacher at preparatory school. The experience was a “360-degree moment” for the actress, who praises the script for the opportunity to bestow words of wisdom to Ashley, now played by Akira Akbar.
Related: What the Cast of 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' Is Up to Now
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Akira Akbar as Ashley Banks in 'Bel-Air'She remembers seeing Akbar, 17, wearing the same uniform she was in “every day” on Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. One scene saw Mrs. Hughes bestow words of wisdom to Ashley, a moment that hit close to home for Ali.
“I’m telling this beautiful Ashley, ‘Always be yourself. Never let anybody define you,’“ Ali recalls to PEOPLE. “I had to take a beat. I told the director, I was like, ‘Are we done? Okay, thank you so much.’ And I went around the wall. I just bawled, because my heart exploded.”
The Young and the Restless star has nothing but kind words about her successor, remarking they’re “a part of a two-girl sorority” as Ashley’s actresses.
“She is the age that I was when I was doing Fresh Prince, and to be a young actress on a hit show at this time was a very special experience,” says Ali. “It also requires a lot of self-protection and knowing who you are and competence, and she has all those things.”
Courtesy Zumba
Tatyana Ali and Alfonso Ribeiro reunite at a Zumba class on June 21, 2024Ribeiro, 52, who played Ashley’s older brother Carlton in Fresh Prince, also admires the work that the Bel-Air actors have done on the series. A few weeks ago, the Dancing with the Stars co-host spoke with Carlton’s new actor, Olly Sholotan, whom he calls a “lovely, wonderful young man.” He adds that he’s “very proud” of the beloved show’s dramatic reimagining for “continuing the legacy in a different way.”
Ali echoes the sentiment, stating that although it’s a big ask to interpret comedy characters into a tonally different series, the Bel-Air cast and crew do it “with a lot of respect for the original show.”
Courtesy Zumba
Tatyana Ali and Alfonso Ribeiro reunite at a Zumba classTwenty-eight years out of Fresh Prince, Ali and Ribeiro’s close sibling dynamic persists. The two visit each other when in the same city, and their families keep in touch. Following their first Zumba class together, the duo says they’ve discovered another way to stay in contact.
“If you love to dance and you love good music, it's perfect,” Ribeiro says of the cardio program. “It's a great way for Tatyana and I to come together and hang out and just enjoy being together. It’s a magical class.”
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Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is streaming in full on Max, and Bel-Air is available to stream on Peacock.
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