Will Smith recently released his movie “Gemini Man” which has groundbreaking technology of playing his younger self against his current self. As apart of his promotion for the film he stopped by Stephen Colbert’s talk show to speak about the movie. The Late Show With Stephen Colbert saw Will Smith reveal what he would tell his younger self.
There’s a certain naiveté to youth that is powerful, right? When you don’t know something. Like, not knowing can be a real power ’cause… you’re aggressive
Will Smith
Will Smith states that being younger there is a certain attitude that creates a blissful ignorance. He continued saying, “So, I feel like I would ask my young self for advice.” The ambition of his youth is still admired as he so astutely put, “so young Will was wildly courageous to the level of foolishness,” he explained. “But I would want to ask my younger self about the source of that courage because I’ve actually lost touch with that source. I have to manipulate it a little bit more than I used to.”
One of the things he would tell his younger self is to turn down a movie role for another.
“I just thought of something I would tell myself. I would go, ‘Hey man, don’t do Wild Wild West.’ I would say, ‘Dude, do Neo! Do Neo!’ ‘Cause I got offered The Matrix.”
Will Smith also spoke with another media outlet and revealed he would like to work with a young Marlon Brando if technically possible.
The legendary actor is known for show stealing scenes in Apocalypse Now and The Godfather. Brando died in 2004 aged 80.
“It’s pretty crazy to think that there’s now a 23-year-old digital version of myself, an avatar that exists that I can use for other films,” he said (via The List). “As the technology gets better and better, can a young Will Smith make a movie with a young Marlon Brando? That’s what I’m thinking.”
