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The World Needs a Gritty ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’

Now, this is a story all about how my life got flipped-turned upside down. These are lyrics that Fresh Prince fans have sung since the show’s premiere in 1990. The sitcom provided us with many hilarious episodes over their six seasons. The show approached many touching episodes and topics over their six year run. For the most part though people watched The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air so they could laugh. Recently a fan released a trailer of a much grittier and darker version of the show using the famous lyric, I got in one little fight and my mom got scared, and said “You’re movin’ with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air.”

The trailer also utilizes Will playing basketball and revealing that the reason he is moving out to Bel-Air in the first place. Sure this is partly because of a fight, but in all reality this occurs because Will gets caught carrying a weapon to defend himself. The knowledge that her son felt the need to protect himself in such a manner scares her. She knows she must protect her child by sending him away. Uncle Phil of course insists he will not bail him out again and that he has rules Will must obey. Other than bailing Will out of jail the dynamic of the relationship with Uncle Phil has not changed all that much.

The internet is currently going crazy over this fan-made trailer:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAfJpyBgcgA]

Considering the dramatization within the trailer it’s no surprise that the internet is going wild over the potential lurking inside. While the trailer sets Bel-Air up as a feature length film, the idea lends itself to a weekly episodic drama. Many of the old episodes could lend themselves to new episodes and pay homage to the original show. For instance when Will gets shot and Carlton goes to get a gun because he no longer feels safe anymore, they could change this to Carlton actually growing fond of Will and Carlton does not reveal that he has a gun. Instead, Carlton goes out to seek revenge on the man who shot Will. Does he murder him? Does he get away with it?  Does Will find out and intervene just in time?  This could lend itself to the cliffhanger of the year!

Not to mention another episode that could hit too close to home.  The sad fact of the matter is the episode is still painfully relevant today.  Carlton and Will get pulled over while attempting to bring a family friend’s car to Palm Springs and get pulled over.  Instead this could work with any of the characters.  They could play off the hit book, and film, The Hate U Give and create something not only powerful, but a way that parents could talk to their children.  Unfortunately racial profiling is still alive and well so we need episodes like that on television and in movies.  We need people to feel uncomfortable and know it’s wrong.

We could see true growth in the character of Will, much like we did in the original series.  In this circumstance though we could see him move forward in other ways.  Maybe he becomes a record producer as he starts Ashley’s career, another nod to the original series.  Maybe he could be a sports broadcaster or a player in the NBA.  He could get drafted from college and actually reveal that as cool as he is that it’s okay to use the gifts he’s attained by living with Uncle Phil and Aunt Vivian.  They could shatter stereotypes or break boundaries with this show much like they did before in the 90s.

The trailer lends itself perfectly to the hour drama television format as well. A grittier and edgier Fresh Prince would be the perfect way to revive this series.  I’m not sure that a sitcom reboot of any kind would work once more.  By revamping past episodes and throwing in the characters exploring music from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, audiences would be in for a treat by getting a weekly dose of nostalgia as well as something fresh and new. Plus the image of imagine Hilary adding all her credit cards to Apple wallet would be perfection.  I imagine that Apple wallet would not know what to do with itself!

Though there’s no sign of any of this coming into fruition, this has become the fan-made trailer that may have breathed life into a hit drama.  I for one know I would feel the need to rearrange my DVR to make room for the series and I think many fans of the original show would do the same.

What do you think of the Bel-Air trailer?  Who could you imagine playing Will at this point?  Is this something that Will Smith would even sign off on? Let us know your thoughts below!

Source: Buzzfeed