Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air dramatic reboot Bel-Air lands at Peacock in an unprecedented two-season deal

It all started with a moody, exceptionally well-done fan trailer that went viral.

And now one year later, Morgan Cooper’s fan-made vision of The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air as a gritty and dark drama will become a reality, with a high profile two-season order at NBC’s nascent streaming platform Peacock.

The Fresh Prince himself Will Smith broke the news Tuesday, in a recorded call uploaded to YouTube with Bel-Air creator Cooper along with Chris Collins, a cowriter and executive producer.

Morgan’s viral video, uploaded in March of 2019, featured actor Jerry Madison in Smith’s role as a transplanted youth from Philadelphia dealing with a new set of circumstances in Bel-Air, California. 

The minor police kerfuffle Will experiences in the opening credits of the lighthearted Nineties sitcom is re-approached in the new clip, giving it new weight and meaning in light of more current accounts of repeated police brutality and violence against Black Americans.

To date, the Bel-Air video has racked up more than 6million views on YouTube alone, while it can also be viewed on alternative platforms such as Vimeo. 

Smith also shared the video of his announcement on Instagram, writing in the caption, ‘8 months ago, a young filmmaker from Kansas City @cooperfilms uploaded a video on YouTube reimagining The @freshprince of Bel-Air for present day as a DRAMA! 

‘Everybody sent it to me,’ the Oscar nominee continued. ‘It was outstanding. I had NEVER envisioned revisiting the Banks family in this way. We knew this was special, so we called @ryokanproductions and asked him to lead the team (he wrote on The Wire) and he said YES! Months of writing, developing and pitching… and now it’s happening.

‘Bel-Air got a TWO SEASON order, debuting in 2021 on @nbc’s streaming service @peacocktv. Morgan Cooper and Chris Collins, you are THE TRUTH!!’ he concluded.

Smith also shared his excitement in the video call, remarking that the two season order based off of a pitch (as opposed to a filmed pilot) is ‘unprecedented’.

‘I’ve been in this business for 30 years, and that does not happen!’ he exclaimed. 

The timing of the new Bel-Air series is perfect – if 2020 has taught Hollywood execs anything, it’s that real-life stories featuring Black voices and lives need to be placed front and center in the mainstream.

Smith, Cooper and Collins will all co-executive produce the new series, alongside Quincy Jones, Benny Medina, and original series creators Andy and Susan Borowitz. 

Miguel Melendez and Westbrook Studios’ Terence Carter are also on board as exec producers.

Meanwhile, this isn’t the first reboot that Peacock has greenlit.

The streamer recently set in motion a new take on the classic 1995 teen comedy Clueless, this time told from Cher’s bestie Dionne – a role originated by Stacey Dash.

Reboots of Battlestar Galactica and Queer As Folk are also being worked on at Peacock, in addition to a sequel series to Saved By The Bell. 

Clearly, Nineties nostalgia is running high – news of Bel-Air’s series order comes after it was announced last week that HBO Max is adding a Fresh Prince reunion special to its lineup.

This, in addition to the highly-touted and oft-delayed Friends reunion.

The newly announced special will reunite the surviving cast of the original Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, which ran from 1990 to 1996.

Smith will be joined for that unscripted special by cast mates Tatyana Ali, Karyn Parsons, Joseph Marcell, Daphne Maxwell Reid, Alfonso Ribeiro and of course, DJ Jazzy Jeff.