Will Smith Reveals Why He Almost Refused to Star in ‘Men in Black’

Will Smith has revealed how Steven Spielberg convinced him to star in Men in Black, after the star initially expressed reservations about appearing in the film.

In a recent interview with Kevin Hart on the Peacock talk show, Hart to Hart, Smith explained that he initially did not want to star in the 1997 action-comedy because he didn’t wish to become known for alien and sci-fi movies. The King Richard Oscar-winner admitted that it was his former manager, James Lassiter, who recommended he take the role of Agent J in MIB. Lassiter was also the reason Smith took on two iconic (and Oscar-nominated) roles.

“In the heyday, the 10 movies I made at the top of my career, [James] was choosing the films,” Smith told Hart. “He just had an eye. I didn’t want to make Pursuit of Happyness. I didn’t want to make Ali. And [James] picked Men in Black. I kind of understood Men in Black a little bit, but I didn’t want to make Men in Black. That was the next year after Independence Day. So I didn’t want to make two alien movies back to back.”

Once Spielberg learned of Smith’s hesitation, the Jurassic Park director took a very direct approach to negotiations. “Steven Spielberg sent a helicopter for me—to talk to me,” Smith emphasized. “I was in New York. It landed at his house. And, like, he had me at hello. And it was the first time I ever had lemonade with carbonated water. You can’t say no to that.”

“He said the coldest shit,” Smith continued. “He said: ‘Tell me why you don’t want to make my movie…’ And he was the producer. And he put the ellipsis at the end, it was the dot, dot, dot. If he had continued, he would have said, ‘Joker, you know I made Jaws, right? You know I made E.T.’”

As they say, the rest is history. Men in Black went on to gross $589 million globally, and spawned two sequels. Its success, along with that of Independence Day, is largely credited with launching Smith’s blockbuster film career.