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The Smith family is not shy about giving insight into the depths of their personal lives, and Will Smith just opened up about the moment his son, Jaden, requested to be an emancipated minor back when he was 15. At the time, the pair had just worked on their movie After Earth together, and the film was a major flop with Smith’s son getting the brunt of the scrutiny.
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Smith revealed in his upcoming memoir, “Will,” as told by an excerpt from PEOPLE, “‘After Earth’ was an abysmal box office and critical failure. And what was worse was that Jaden took the hit. Fans and the press were absolutely vicious; they said and printed things about Jaden that I refuse to repeat.”
Smith continued, “Jaden had faithfully done everything that I’d instructed him to do, and I had coached him into the worst public mauling he’d ever experienced.” It was this incident that led Jaden to request emancipation, and Smith explained, “He felt misled, and he lost his trust in my leadership.”
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Fortunately, his then fifteen-year-old son ultimately decided against emancipation, with Smith writing, “At fifteen years old, when Jaden asked about being an emancipated minor, my heart shattered. He ultimately decided against it, but it sucks to feel like you’ve hurt your kids.”
Smith and his son have patched up their relationship since, but the moment stuck with the 53-year-old actor for years. His memoir, “Will” hit shelves on November 9, 2021.
