Alfonso Ribeiro Says a Fresh Prince Revival Is "Impossible" Without This 1 Character
Sorry The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air fans, it looks like we won't be getting a reboot of the classic '90s series anytime soon.
Reboot fever has been raging for a while now, with shows either being revived (like Murphy Brown) or fully rebooted (such as The CW's Charmed), so it stands to reason that the cast of Fresh Prince would have to field questions on the prospect of reviving the iconic sitcom. According to Alfonso Ribeiro, who played Carlton Banks on the show, there are no plans to revive the series — especially without a key player.
"I think it's impossible with James Avery being gone," he said, during an interview with PeopleTV's Chatter. "He's actually the most important character on the show. ... Without him, everything that Will and Carlton did would mean nothing. "
ADVERTISEMENT
Avery played Philip "Uncle Phil" Banks on Fresh Prince, the family patriarch and Will Smith's strict uncle. Uncle Phil was generally seen as the moral compass for the family and is known for being one of the best TV dads ever. Avery passed away in 2013 from complications following open heart surgery.
"Do we really want to see Will and Carlton in their 40s and 50s?" Ribeiro added. "I think people think they want to see that, but I don't think people really want to see that."
This isn't the first time Riberiro made his thoughts on a revival clear. The Dancing With the Stars winner shared similar thoughts in 2014, telling Entertainment News, "I don't think we feel as a cast that we would do even our fans justice. We all felt like [Avery] was the centerpiece or the nucleus of that show. Without him, it just doesn't work."
While a reboot of the series could happen some time far off into the future, Ribeiro is pretty firm on the idea that it's unlikely. And apparently he isn't the only one who feels the same way! When it comes to his longtime friend and costar, Riberiro joked that Smith is definitely not coming back for a revival. "Listen, you know how much money they don't have to get Will back?" he said with a laugh. "That's the reality."