Bel-Air Is Ending, But The Cast Says The Show’s Legacy Will Live On

As a major fan of the original The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, I was hesitant but eager to see what its reboot Bel Air would bring to the characters I hold very dear to my heart. In 2022 when the show premiered, I loved it instantly. Recently, we’ve seen so many reboots come and go, but Peacock’s Bel Air has succeeded where others have failed . By taking a beloved 30-minute sitcom and turning it into a compelling & layered one-hour drama, Bel-Air brought something fresh and exciting to the Fresh Prince franchise. The storylines and character arcs were so detailed and nuanced that it felt similar but brand new. While the show is indeed a drama that gets the heart pumping — looking at you, Geoffrey — it still has the warm feeling of a family truly showing what it means to show up for one another. For three seasons, I’ve laughed and even cried while watching Bel Air, and trust me, Season 4 will continue to take us on a rollercoaster of emotions. I was heartbroken when it was announced that this would be Bel-Air’s last season, 

What started as a concept on YouTube six years ago by Morgan Cooper has since flourished into Peacock’s longest running and most streamed original series. The execution of this show from start to finish is a testament to Black ingenuity and a reminder that art is for all of us. As Cassandra Freeman, who plays Aunt Viv told me over Zoom, “Your vision is not trite, it is worthy.” She continued: “The greatest artistic expression is [that] you were born to change other people's lives with your vision..” A word.

Ahead of the Season 4 premiere, I was able to share some laughs and get insight from Bel-Air’s cast on how they feel about the series’ final season, the growth of  their characters,  and the legacy they think Bel Air will leave.

Coco Jones (Hilary Banks): I feel pretty satisfied with my growth. I think that Hilary started off [more] surface.  She's this influencer, this cute girl with sickening outfits. It was very lighthearted at the beginning and then you get to unravel the plights that she goes through and it's real life. [Now, she’s] feeling like she doesn't have a seat at the table and wanting to be the chef and people wanting to downplay her recipes, like they're too spicy. This girl comes from this zip code, this net worth, but it didn't buy her this easy life. It doesn't buy her self-discovery. She still has to go through the highs and lows to figure out who she is. I've enjoyed really playing her, her arcs and her peaks and valleys.

Akira Akbar (Ashley Banks): I feel really satisfied with Ashley's growth among these seasons. We really got to see a teenage girl and what she goes through. When I was a younger teenager, I fully didn't know who I was. I was still trying to figure out myself. I was exactly like Ashley. I think the writers really did a great job of portraying that on screen.

Cassandra Freeman (Aunt Viv): [Viv] started off as a politician's wife, and by the end of this, she becomes a self-expressed artist. It's been an amazing journey to play her. She’s trying to figure out how to speak her truth and take care of other people and [she] realizes the best way to take care of other people is to take care of yourself first. Take care of your passions first. Tell people the truth first. It's been an honor to play her storyline.

Olly Sholotan (Carlton Banks): I've never been happier. I think that the beautiful thing that these writers have done is they've taken such good care of our characters' journeys, and I just know that by the time you get to the very end, fans are gonna be so proud of Carlton's growth.

Jabari Banks (Will Smith): I was gonna say proud. Proud of the people that our characters have become. Proud of their journeys and proud of where they're going next. 

Jimmy Akingbola (Geoffrey Thompson):  We started very gentle with Geoffrey. It was a lot of sitting in a mystery and not resting on the wave of nostalgia. I'm an actor that loves to get my hands dirty. [I’ll roll] up my sleeves, gimme the ball, let me play. So I was very happy when we got into Season 3, where we got to see behind the layers of Geoffrey. I think Season 4 is the perfect way to sort of wrap things up because again, his past comes through the door. My key word for this season for Geoffrey is fracture. He fractures everything that he built with the Banks family. And I think it teaches you that there are consequences to every action you do in life. And this is the first time that Geoffrey is not in control… He's under pressure. 

Jordan L. Jones (Jazz): Just the growth of my character in general has just been a blessing because when we first get the roles, it's like you’re just cool with whatever. I'm playing Jazz. I'm not a part of the family, but my character has layers and layers and layers and layers. Coming up to Season 4, I think one of the main themes is about Jazz’s evolution [and] unconditional love. And just being strong enough to tell your significant other, or the person that you love, how you actually feel no matter what the circumstances are. As men too, we need to do that more often instead of trying to be hard all the time. That's one thing that my character definitely has taught me. Some of the things that sound weak or feel weak or seem like what you shouldn't do, [aren’t like that at all]. It feels like don't express your feelings this way, but no, actually, instead of thinking that's weak, I think that it actually takes a very strong person to do that.

Adrian Holmes [Uncle Phil]: Philip Banks started out being that pillar for the family and over time, we start to see cracks in that pillar and just how  life has weighed on him and the pressures of being perfect. I think that the theme for him is legacy and building legacy is not what we leave behind for the next generation. It's what we leave within the next generation — the impact, the lives we change, you know. I think that Philip has done a great job over the arc of this series in just empowering Will, empowering Carlton, and the family, and just letting them know that they are enough and they have all the tools they need and just really building them up to be the best versions of themselves. Also just embracing the simple things in life and inner peace. I think he's just been so busy outside, looking outside that he hasn't been able to really focus on the inside and over the time where we see him in this season, he starts to really look within more and appreciate the little things.

Coco: If I had to say it would be to stay close to the people who love you back. You know, at the end of the day, they will be your support system. And you can have great accomplishments, but don't forget the people who love you back and who really, truly know you because there's always seasons and things change. And you wanna have the people that will always support you as close to you as possible.

Cassandra:  Titles change, positions fade, great successes get forgotten. But family is why they say charity starts at home.That's the first one. And then the second thing is outside of the show, just the birth of it. I hope people realize if you have a great idea, you too can be Morgan Cooper and drop your thesis for an idea on YouTube. And your platform is how many people agree with you. And you not only will change your life, you'll change everyone else's life. That's the greatest artistic expression. You were born to change other people's lives with your vision. Your vision is not trite, it is worthy. 

​​Akira: I think the biggest takeaway from Bel Air is family over everything. You can have all the friends in the world. They can come and go, but your family is always there

Simone Jones: I feel like it's the ability to reinvent yourself and love yourself while you do it. And, also to really take care of your community because we're gonna mess up. I feel like relationships now have become very temporary and very fragile. And so to watch,even just as a cast, we go through like our teens together in LA and something you've never seen before, and watching these characters kind of mirror a similar turbulent time. I think I want people to leave with, like, your community is really important to yourself and also everybody else.

Olly: Man, Simone really took the words just kind of right outta my mouth. So everything she said, but put it in a slightly deeper voice.

Jabari: She said something that  really stuck me there too. The reinvention, uh, you know, reinvention and, not being afraid to reinvent yourself. Not being afraid to reinvent in general. You know we've shown the world that just 'cause you know, you reinvent something doesn't mean that it has to be corny or it doesn't mean that it has to, you know what I’m saying? It can be a totally different thing, you know?  We are the living proof of that. 

Jordan:  I think for me, I think for our theme has been constant throughout four seasons, where like we're just showing, all aspects of the Black experience. What I love about our show is that each one of our characters is going through a different black experience. We got me like the hustler. That's like, I'm not broke, but I ain't, I ain't Uncle Phil, you know? Uncle Phil's like the leader of the household. And then we, then we got Geoffery, who's black 007. We got Will fish outta water. We got Carlton, who is very privileged. So it's like I can, I can go down the line, but we're showing that the black experience, 

Adrian: We're not a monolith.

Jordan: The black experience is not just one experience, like, come over here we’re black this is what we do. It's not like that, you know? 

Adrian: Absolutely. We're not defined by our trauma or our struggle.  You know, our joy is something to be celebrated. Our joy is our superpower. It's our fuel, and that's what keeps us resilient. I always say, we can bend, but don't break. Our black joy is what prevents us from, from breaking and always surviving no matter how difficult the situations are. The issue is we always find a way to prevail. Our show, Bel Air has done a fantastic job of really showcasing that, you know?. We're not a monolith. We are redefining what the black experience looks like on television.We need more of that narrative moving forward.  And hopefully there's not a huge void after our show. 

Coco: Hmm. Bothered. I [like to] get everything out in the open. I really love therapy and I can't with a secret. It's like mold. It's just going to get everywhere.  Plus, I can't remember everything I done said. Now I gotta keep up with the lies. I don't know what I just said to you.

Cassandra: I'm kind of unbothered because I'm starting to realize that if I am interested in what you're cooking up all the time and in your pot, it just steals my joy. You can live your whole life knowing everybody's secrets and never even deal with your own. So if it's my secrets, I'm bothered. I'm gonna get it out. If it ain't bothering me in my house, listen, you go over there. I ain't got time for that. It’s too much, I'm unbothered.  

Akira: My secret, I feel like I'll be bothered and I'll be like, I need to tell somebody, but someone else's I don't care.

Jordan: Unbothered by that.

Jimmy: Unbothered!

Adrian: Unbothered.

Jordan: Everybody don’t have to know what your family is going through.

Jabari: It depends on the secret.

Olly: Yeah. Like keeping family [secrets] in the family? Bothered. But I’m OK with keeping family secrets from outside people. I ain't trying to tell our business. 

Jabari: Sometimes you gotta keep a little secret. Sometimes you have to. It's best for the family. Mom don't need to know that. Mom don't need to know what Cuzzo did when we went out. Mom don’t need to know that. Keep it secret.

Olly: I think what's in the dark will always come to the light, so I don't know about this one.

Simone: Oh no. I feel I'm a big fan of everybody having all the information and then doing what you will with it.

You can watch all seasons of Bel Air on Peacock. The series finale premieres on Dec 8th.