The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Cast Reunion Special Coming to HBO Max

The cast of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air will reunite for an unscripted reunion special on HBO Max, [...]

By Cameron Bonomolo

The cast of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air will reunite for an unscripted reunion special on HBO Max, the streaming home to all six seasons of the Will Smith-starring comedy. Smith, who played a Philadelphia born-and-raised version of himself on the NBC sitcom, will get together with the Banks family — Alfonso Ribeiro (Carlton), Karyn Parsons (Hilary), Tatyana Ali (Ashley), and Daphne Maxwell Reid (Aunt Viv), as well as Joseph Marcell (butler Geoffrey) and DJ Jazzy Jeff (Jazz) — for "a funny and heartfelt night full of music, dancing, and special surprise guests, in honor of the series that ran for six seasons and 148 episodes."

The 30th anniversary special will film September 10 for release near Thanksgiving on HBO Max, the streamer said in a release Monday. That filming date is exactly 30 years after the Quincy Jones-produced Fresh Prince premiered on NBC, which saw wayward teen Will relocate to Bel Air, Los Angeles, to live with his wealthy aunt (originally played by Janet Hubert) and uncle (James Avery).

Produced by Smith and wife Jada Pinkett Smith's media company Westbrook Media, the Fresh Prince reunion captures its stars "looking back at the series and the cultural impact [it] has had since its debut."

In April, the show's cast reunited on Smith's remotely-recorded Snapchat series, Will From Home, with an emotional remembrance of Avery. The Uncle Phil actor died in 2014 from complications involving open-heart surgery.

HBO Max was among the bidders for the dramatic Fresh Prince reboot inspired by filmmaker Morgan Cooper's viral concept trailer, to be produced by Smith as a full series.

WarnerMedia's streaming service previously announced another NBC sitcom get-together, this one reuniting the entire cast of Friends, which had its planned August shooting date delayed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. HBO Max most recently set another original reunion special with the cast of the Aaron Sorkin-created The West Wing to raise voting awareness ahead of the 2020 election.

All six seasons and 148 episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air are now streaming exclusively on HBO Max.

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