Will Smith Had Trouble Getting Into ‘The Best Shape of My Life’
YouTube announced a new Will Smith documentary at its Television Critics Association presentation on Sept. 23. Smith and YouTube previously collaborated on The Jump, in which the movie star bungee jumped over the Grand Canyon on his 50th birthday. The new series is called The Best Shape of My Life.
Will Smith was in ‘the worst shape of my life’
During the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Smith shared a photo of himself admitting he was in the worst shape of his life. His hair and beard were overgrown and he had a gut for the first time in his public life.
Physical fitness had been part of Smith’s blockbuster movie persona. His first starring role in 1995’s Bad Boys highlighted his abs as he chased bad guys in an open shirt. A decade later, Smith was still showing his abs off in I Am Legend as he worked out to prepare to battle monsters as the last man alive in New York.
Smith got into extra shape to play Muhammed Ali in 2001. A gut is not normally part of Smith’s look. He even maintained those abs even when he played regular people, like in The Pursuit of Happyness, based on the story of Chris Gardner, who as a stockbroker did not work out like Smith.
How Will Smith tried to get in ‘The Best Shape of My Life’
So, the trailer for Best Shape of My Life begins with Smith setting his goals. Here, he reveals how far he let himself go during the pandemic, which still isn’t that much.
“I’m going to lose 20 pounds in 20 weeks,” he says. “Let us begin.”
The trailer shows Smith lifting weights, doing yoga and even skydiving. Then the screen goes black and Smith speaks again.
“Yeah, so that was the kind of show I thought I was making,” he says. “But things turned out a little bit different.”
The real story of ‘Best Shape of My Life’
After showing the teaser trailer, YouTube head of original programming Susanne Daniels acknowledged there’s more to the story of Smith’s weight loss than just working out and dieting.
“What started as a purely physical fitness journey turned into so much more,” Daniels said. “As part of our commitment to telling real stories, please mark Nov. 8 on your calendar to check out what really happened when Will challenged himself to improve his health and wellness.”
Neither Daniels nor Smith addressed what actually happened when the superstar got back into shape. This is just a tease, but it suggests he found he could not quite bounce back to his old self like he thought.
Smith turns 53 on Sept. 25. It’s a fact of biology that human beings aren’t quite as malleable in their 50s as they were in their 20s and 30s. 50-year-olds and older can still get in shape. It’s just a different process and it sounds like that’s what he discovered, but sharing details will be valuable to viewers.
YouTube shared more about Best Shape of My Life in a press release:
This emotionally packed six-part unscripted series from Westbrook Media and YouTube Originals peels back the curtain on what makes Will Smith truly tick as he is pushed to his limits physically, mentally, and emotionally. What starts as a docu-follow about Will’s desire to go from the “worst shape” of his life to a new movie star body evolved into a deeper, darker and more profound journey into Will’s psyche. With “Best Shape of My Life,” Will finds himself questioning the very behaviors that have led to his success – and ultimately it’s on this search where his healing can begin.
YouTube press release, 9/23/21
