Contrary to popular belief, Jaden Smith was not handed his role in The Pursuit of Happyness—the award-winning biographical drama starring his dad, Will Smith.
Directed by Gabriele Muccino, the 2006 flick tells the story of Chris Gardner, a homeless salesman struggling to achieve his share of the American dream. Will took on the role of Chris while Jaden made his acting debut as Chris’ young son, Christopher Gardner Jr. Although Jaden’s portrayal was widely acclaimed, some questioned if he was simply given the role because of his last name.
Will addressed the mild controversy during a recent appearance on the Full Send Podcast, explaining how his son ultimately landed the job despite concerns over nepotism.
“So we were looking for a kid. Gabriele Muccino was the director,” Will told the Full Send hosts. “So we were reading kids, reading kids, reading kids. And Gabriele is an Italian artist and if it’s not exactly how he wants it… he’s super passionate. And he just couldn’t find the right chemistry. He literally read 40 kids.”
One day, Will was lying in bed and reading the screenplay when his then 5-year-old son, Jaden, suggested he get the part of Christopher Jr.
“[Jaden] says, ‘I can do that, daddy,’” Will recalled. “I was like, ‘You can do what?’ And he’s like, ‘Duh, play your son… I’m your son every day, daddy.’”
Will said he then took Jaden in for a reading and Gabriele immediately “teared up.”
“He was like, ‘It has to be Jaden,’” Will said.
Although the director knew Jaden was perfect for the role, the studio heads weren’t convinced. In fact, they were initially against the idea.
“The studio felt like it was gonna look like I was just putting my son in a movie, and they’re like, ‘Please don’t. That’s gonna kill it,’” Will said. “So he did about four or five reads and we kept reading more kids, more kids and he was just the best for it. And, ultimately, the studio agreed.”
Will addressed Jaden’s Pursuit of Happyness casting in his 2021 self-titled memoir. The Oscar winner said Gabriele was adamant about casting Jaden but the studio feared “it would seem like nepotism,” as Will’s company Overbrook Entertainment was also producing the flick. So, in the interest of optics and fairness, Will and his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, decided to remove themselves from the decision-making process as Jaden went through the entire audition process.
“[Jaden] was asked to audition an unprecedented nine separate times,” Will wrote. “The studio simply didn’t want the problems that came along with casting him. But audition after audition, in all of his innocent, 6-year-old glory, he proved himself the right actor for the role.”
Elsewhere in the Full Send interview, Will admitted he almost passed on The Pursuit of Happyness as he wasn’t convinced it would be a hit.
“It was just a magical time and my manager, James Lassiter—I credit his taste,” he said about his career in the mid-aughts. “He was doing most of the choosing back then. I did not want to make The Pursuit of Happyness. So, I looked at it and it was a really, really great story, right? But I was like, ‘Who wants to go to the movies to see a dude get a job in the ’80s?’ The movie’s about a guy who gets a job. Compared to Men in Black, I Am Legend?… It was a really great story. And JL has exquisite taste. He said, ‘I promise you.’ I read [the script] and I loved it, I just didn’t think it had box-office viability.”
The Pursuit of Happyness topped the box office in its opening week and grossed nearly $164,000,000 in the United States and Canada. It also earned Will a Best Actor nomination at the 2007 Academy Awards.
