Will Smith writes of abusive dad, wanting to ‘avenge’ his mom: ‘A darkness arose within me’

Hollywood

Will Smith is getting candid about his relationship with his father, revealing he once contemplated killing him to avenge alleged abuse suffered by his mother.

In an excerpt from his upcoming memoir “Will” (Penguin Press, out Tuesday), published by People Wednesday, Smith described a formative childhood memory from when he was 9 years old, in which he says he witnessed his father Willard Carroll Smith Sr. punch his mother Caroline Bright in the head so hard she collapsed.

“I saw her spit blood,” Smith writes. “That moment in that bedroom, probably more than any other moment in my life, has defined who I am.”

The incident stayed with the actor and motivated him throughout his Hollywood career, he adds.

“Within everything that I have done since then — the awards and accolades, the spotlights and attention, the characters and the laughs — there has been a subtle string of apologies to my mother for my inaction that day,” Smith writes. “For failing her in the moment. For failing to stand up to my father. For being a coward.”

Smith’s father, a refrigeration engineer and U.S. Air Force veteran, died in 2016 of cancer. As the actor was caring for him during his cancer battle, Smith writes, he once contemplated murdering him.
Will Smith is getting candid about his relationship with his father, revealing he once contemplated killing him to avenge abuse suffered by his mother.

“One night, as I delicately wheeled him from his bedroom toward the bathroom, a darkness arose within me,” he writes. “The path between the two rooms goes past the top of the stairs. As a child I’d always told myself that I would one day avenge my mother. That when I was big enough, when I was strong enough, when I was no longer a coward, I would slay him.”

Smith continues: “I paused at the top of the stairs. I could shove him down, and easily get away with it. … As the decades of pain, anger, and resentment coursed then receded, I shook my head and proceeded to wheel Daddio to the bathroom.”

The 53-year-old’s upcoming book, which is co-authored by “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck” author Mark Manson, will be released 10 days before the premiere of the biopic “King Richard,” in which Smith plays Serena and Venus Williams’ father Richard Williams.

Smith writes in his memoir that his feelings toward his dad are complicated. Though he describes his father as a violent alcoholic, he adds that his dad was there for him “at every game, play, and recital” and “sober at every premiere of every one of my movies.”

“My father tormented me. And he was also one of the greatest men I’ve ever known,” Smith writes. “He was one of the greatest blessings of my life, and also one of my greatest sources of pain.”

Will Smith discusses how father’s abuse ‘defined who I am today’ in upcoming memoir
Will Smith recalls falling in love with co-star Stockard Channing while married

That isn’t the only confession Smith makes in his memoir. In another excerpt shared Wednesday by People, the actor also recalls falling in love with his co-star Stockard Channing while filming 1993’s “Six Degrees of Separation.” Smith, who was married to his first wife Sheree Zampino at the time, said he was living as his character Paul Poitier both on and off camera.

According to Smith, he went so deep into his character that it affected his marriage.

“And to make matters worse, during shooting I fell in love with Stockard Channing,” he adds.

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After filming wrapped, Smith, his wife and their son Trey moved back to Los Angeles. But his feelings for Channing lingered.

“Our marriage was off to a rocky start,” Smith writes. “I found myself desperately yearning to see and speak to Stockard.”

Smith previously confessed to catching feelings for Channing in a 2015 interview with Esquire, telling the outlet that he “actually fell in love with Stockard Channing.”

“The movie was over and I went home, and I was dying to see Stockard,” he told the outlet. “For ‘Six Degrees,’ I wanted to perform well so badly that I was spending six and seven and eight days in character before shooting, and you have to be careful with that.”

Will Smith discusses how father’s abuse ‘defined who I am today’ in upcoming memoir

If you are a victim of domestic violence, the National Domestic Violence Hotline allows you to speak confidentially with trained advocates online or by the phone, which they recommend for those who think their online activity is being monitored by their abuser (800-799-7233). They can help survivors develop a plan to achieve safety for themselves and their children.

Contributing: Rasha Ali

 

Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/books/2021/11/03/will-smith-writes-abusive-dad-avenging-mom-memoir/6274362001/