Will Smith remembers former ‘Fresh Prince of Bel Air’ co-star James Avery

“The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” was for many, the sitcom of their childhood that they grew up watching, and could come back to and watch more of time and time again. For Will Smith, it was even more than that. It was the show that made him into a star. We don’t think we would have had so many classic movies were it not for the show, and Smith has acknowledged the role that many of his co-stars had in his life over the years courtesy of various appearances.

Now for the first time, Smith is opening up about the loss of his co-star James Avery. In a post on Facebook, he cited the lessons that Avery gave him while he was still learning how to grow up in this industry.

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

Smith also shared the photo above, saying that this was the last time that the two were together.

This statement and this tragedy each come after what were at times some terrible hoaxes. Recently, there was a terrible trick pulled by a fake Twitter account where, using a doctored “direct message” with NBC, they made it look like the network was considering a “Fresh Prince of Bel Air” reunion. Sadly, even some celebrities fell for it and shared it out.

Meanwhile, years ago there was a death hoax, and Avery had spoken out about it negatively at the time, and worried that it could hinder his ability to get more acting gigs.

Avery will be missed, both as an inspiration to young actors and also his contributions to TV. Sometimes, people in the public tend to discount the importance that characters and role models have on the lives of others.