Is Will Smith playing Lou (Will’s father) in Bel-Air?

Bel-Air tried to pry open the can of worms that is Will’s father Lou, and why he abandoned his son. But Will himself shut that can by deliberately not reading up the information that Geoffrey dug up on his father.

While all of this was going on, I was wondering—is this the show’s way of getting Will Smith to cameo as Lou? I was sure that if it wasn’t Smith, we’d at least get Lou in some other shape or form. However, that does not seem to be the case.

As of yet, there is no news about Will Smith playing his father Lou in Bel-Air or any other cameo. There is a small possibility he may appear in the finale.

So what exactly happened? Well, in Ep 8, Vy stated that she needed to tell Will the truth about his father since he’s now old enough.

She implied that the reason Lou wasn’t involved in Will’s life is because he was into some dangerous business and Vy with Viv and Phil’s help drove him away.

At the same time, Will asks Geoffrey to help him learn about his father, which he does with no hesitation as the situation reminds him of his own son.

But when Geoffrey finally gives Will the Manila envelope with all the details about his father in Ep. 9, Will chooses not to read the contents.

It suddenly dawns upon Will that his uncle Phil has been the father figure he needs and that’s that.

(Belated realization since asking Geoffrey to secretly gather information got him fired by Phil).

This makes it seem like Lou’s chapter is closed… at least for now.

But I can’t help but feel this is all so very anti-climactic. Why tease us about Lou’s dangerous past if we’re never to learn about it?

Does this mean it will come to light irrespective of whether Will chooses to learn the truth about his father? And if so, will that happen in the season finale?

I know, so many questions! In this light, it is still possible for Will Smith to appear as Lou. After all, we did have Daphne Maxwell Reid and Vernee Watson-Johnson on the show. With Smith as the producer, his cameo is an easy can-do.

But I, personally, am not in favor of this. Lou has never been a positive character in Fresh Prince and I don’t see how he could be one in Bel-Air.

Bringing in Smith for such a role/cameo would be a waste. I hope the show agrees with me on this one and saves Smith for a more memorable moment.

About Bel-Air

Bel-Air is an American drama television series developed by Morgan Cooper, Malcolm Spellman, TJ Brady, and Rasheed Newson. It is a reimagined version of the 90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air . In March 2023, it was renewed for a third season.

The series stars Jabari Banks as Will Smith, with Adrian Holmes, Cassandra Freeman, Coco Jones, Olly Sholotan, Jimmy Akingbola, Akira Akbar, Jordan L Jones, and Simone Joy Jones.

The story follows Will Smith’s complicated journey from the streets of West Philadelphia to the gated mansions of Bel-Air. It dives deep into racial tension, culture shock, and black excellence.