But how has it been for you to go on this rollercoaster ride with viewers? How has the reception of this new version of Carlton been for you? Because it's been a rollercoaster, right? A lot of people were not feeling Carlton in the beginning and now he's really become a fan favorite in season two, and who knows what's going to happen moving forward. I think it's great that we're shedding the light on that. It's a very special story and journey for me to tell, and the implications of that, again, showing Carlton's drug use. We don't spend a lot of time talking about this idea of Black excellence and how forcing Black people to be 112 times better than their white counterparts and how that's damaging to young Black kids. Look, this isn't something that we talk about a lot. I want to get help." That is so important to me. Knowing that there's some kid out there that's going to watch our show and feel seen and feel recognized and feel that, "Oh, this is my story. I take what I do and what we do with the show very, very seriously. How do you feel about how relevant and timely that storyline has been? Carlton's drug use is not something that we've normally seen with children of privilege in the Black community highlighted on television in this way. But obviously, there's a lot of pressure that comes with that. One of the things that I love about watching Carlton's story is that he really represents greatness as a scholar and as a pillar of his community, as a young Black man within the upper echelon of America and Black America specifically. But from a plot perspective, our goal always has been to show realism with our show, to show real life, to show what it's actually like, and I think that when you look at two young men who have grown up in completely different upbringings, completely different places, and then now you kind of toss them into high school and youth – I think it makes sense that they'll kind of have these moments of being on the same page and moments of not being on the same page. All of the first season we chose to work and then we'd yell at each other. Well, my main thing is it's nice to actually go to work and get to have fun with Jabari. How are you enjoying the journey between the two of them and do you feel like it's more realistic to have this kind of portrayal of their ups and downs versus what we saw in the '90s sitcom? A lot of it had to do with Will basically exiling himself from the family, and Carlton being scared because he had lost one of his only companions that he felt like he really had. Speaking of the bromance that's forming between the two in season two, obviously we saw what sparked that in season one. We get to see that bromance form, and we get to watch them become better men, navigating the world as young Black men in America, we get to watch them become better people and iron sharpens iron in a way. But even though we're coming at it from a different angle, I do still think that, especially with season two, we get to see more of that. I'm not going to lie, I was a little apprehensive just because you're right, one thing from that original show is, and always has been, Will and Carlton, they have this sort of almost Tweedle-Dee, Tweedle-Dumb relationship, and they help each other grow and they, over the course of a series, they grow together. New episodes air on Peacock every Thursday. PopCulture spoke with Sholotan about Carlton and Will's journey from Seasons 1-2, his personal character development, and how the storyline serves as an example of the mental anguish the pressure of Black excellence can have on its youth. Carlton has been a polarizing figure in this series, and despite fans' outcry over how well Sholotan portrays the former menacing character, he's become a standout. With the season coming to a close, viewers are anticipating how Carlton will handle the continuous pressures of being the overachiever. In Season 2, we see them lean on one another. And it takes until the end of season one for things to make a drastic turn. ![]() As Will enters into new territory as the hot kid from Philly who seemingly fits in with ease, cousin Carlton is filled with envy and sabotage. Instead of the playful banter we saw in the original, the new Bel-Air resembles more of the story between the well-known biblical figures, Cane and Abel. ![]() The biggest twist in the storyline is the relationship between Will Smith and his well-off cousin, Carlton Banks. With a cast made up of virtual unknowns on the small screen and a new spin on the plot, it has become an extension of what the original was and provides deeper substance than the first. When Bel-Air first premiered on Peacock last year, fans of the famed '90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air were terrified that the reimagined dramatized version would ruin the legacy of the show.
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