The upcoming 'Prince of Bel-Air' show has found its Aunt Viv, tapping Cassandra Freeman to take on the role originally played by Janet Hubert and then Daphne Maxwell Reid.
- Sep 16, 2021
AceShowbiz - "Luke Cage" star Cassandra Freeman has signed on for the reboot of 1990s series "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air".
On Tuesday (14Sep21), executives at NBC's streaming site Peacock named the rest of their cast for new show "Bel-Air", after previously announcing newcomer Jabari Banks had scooped the lead role, Will, made famous by Will Smith in the original programme.
Freeman will co-star as Will's Aunt Viv while the role of Uncle Philip - originally played by James Avery - has gone to Adrian Holmes of "Smallville" and "Arrow".
Nigerian-American actor Olly Sholotan will take on Carlton Banks, first played by Alfonso Ribeiro, who was famed for his funny "Carlton Dance."
Coco Jones and Akira Akbar, meanwhile, have been cast as Carlton's sisters, Hilary and Ashley Banks, respectively.
The rest of the line up includes Jimmy Akingbola as family butler Geoffrey, Simone Joy Jones as Will's love interest Lisa, and "Snowfall" 's Jordan L. Jones as Jazz, who was originally played by DJ Jazzy Jeff.
While "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air", which was loosely based on the real-life stories of both Warner Bros. executive Benny Medina and Will Smith, was a half-hour comedy, the new show will be a one-hour drama.
Smith is onboard as a producer of the revamped fish-out-of-water story, which is expected to debut next year (22).
The original stars reunited last year to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the show. They toured the mansion used as the family home on the sitcom and reminisced the old times.
