Actor Will Smith (51, "Bad Boys For Life") talks to his wife Jada Pinkett Smith (48) about raising children together in a special "Red Table Talkt" episode for Father's Day, admitting that he made some mistakes as a father to have. He felt the desire for a family early on: "I wanted to be a father since I was six years old. I loved my family, but my father's upbringing was clearly deficient," recalls the Hollywood star. At the age of ten, he looked at his father and thought: "I could do that better than him."
But when he first became a father – he was just 24 years old – he realized that being a father is not that easy. About the first time with his son Trey (27), he says: "I brought him home and we put him in his cradle and it was an absolute terror. I was now responsible for his life. I cried so." He bursts into tears at the thought of the moment. After the divorce from his first wife Sheree Zampino (52), the relationship with his son was initially difficult. With Jada Pinkett Smith he has two more children: Jaden (21) and Willow (19).
Will Smith: Mistake as a father
In the intimate conversation, the Hollywood star also talks about his own upbringing. His father was extremely strict, often treated him roughly, and in some cases also became palpable towards Smith's mother. With his own children, he wanted to do everything differently and be nicer. But he often noticed that as a father you have to take action.
A key moment was a situation with daughter Willow, who became famous in 2010 at the age of nine with her hit song "Whip My Hair". When she went on a 30-day tour, she didn't want to go on in the middle. At that time Smith forced her to go on the tour – today he regrets his "military attitude". He then changed his upbringing style.