“WILL” by Will Smith

The best smacktor’s recent memoir is mainly a mixed bag

By: Matthew Zeichert

Who would have thought that Will Smith’s memoir would be more popular today than it was during its release six months ago? With the recent Will Smith vs Chris Rock controversy, now seems like a good time to review “Will,” a book about the life of the Fresh Prince himself. 

Published on November 9, 2021, “Will” became a #1 New York Times bestseller and received critical acclaim upon its release from Oprah Winfrey and USA Today. Co-written (or possibly ghostwritten) by beloved self-help author Mark Manson of “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck,” “Will” chronicles the life of West Philadelphia’s Will Smith from birth through his 50th birthday extravaganza. Throughout the book’s 400+pages, Will is vocal about his complicated relationship with his father, his fatherhood, his relationship difficulties, and especially his music and TV/film career. He refuses to jump from present to past and back to present. Despite the book’s numerous faults, the linear storytelling was an excellent authorial choice. 

Although it was advertised as a memoir, it could be argued that “Will” is also a self-help book. There are numerous times when the storyline abruptly transitions to an ancient parable or explanation of a psychological concept. This is one of the memoir’s biggest issues: transitions. It isn’t uncommon for Will and company to jump from one important life event to another unrelated life event or philosophical observation. One could even argue that the book could have been two separate books since “Will” is both a by-the-numbers memoir and a self-help paperback. 

Another bothersome aspect is the over-explanation of cultural phenomena such as “The Arsenio Hall Show” or ayahuasca rituals. It makes sense to include a small side note about events or decades-old media, but “Will” is filled with paragraph upon paragraph of info that most of us already know. 

Now to the most damning flaw of “Will:” the author’s unchecked character flaws. From the get-go, Will doesn’t shy away from reflecting on some of his mistakes in a relatively introspective manner, yet he is oblivious to some of his most unsavory traits. For starters, “Will” is a memoir that reeks of arrogance. Flip to just about any page and you will surely find Will claiming that he is/was “the biggest movie star” or “the greatest rapper.” Obviously, a man like Will can’t ignore the fact that he is rich and famous when telling his life story, but the editors could have axed a few boastful comments prior to the memoir’s release.

Although “Will” is filled with confessions of marital missteps and career mistakes, Will fails to realize he is a fairly possessive person. Sure, the memoir touches upon his tendency to spend large amounts of money on stupid sh*t, and I, for one, respect how honest he is about his notorious shopping sprees. The issue is his possessiveness over people. Last month, it became clear that he is overprotective of the women he loves. By stating, “Keep my wife’s name out your f*cking mouth” (emphasis on “my”) and “I got to protect [insert any ‘King Richard’ actress’s name here],” people started to understand that he has control issues. Be it his relationship with his daughter Willow, his wife Jada, or even his ex-wife Sheree, when a problem involves a woman he is quick to place the blame on others, although he places the blame on himself when discussing things like his tendency to overindulge. Will may not be consciously sexist, but as the dude from “The Big Lebowski” said, “New sh*t has come to light.” 

The subtitle of this article refers to “Will” as a mixed bag, which implies that something is equal parts good and bad. This is the case for “Will.” He is clearly a natural storyteller. The way he recalls his childhood, young adulthood, and mid-life crises makes it seem like he has written countless books prior to the release of “Will.” He hasn’t. A little less surprising is his comedy being effortlessly translated from the stage to the page. I’m not one to chuckle while reading, but the one-liners and corny jokes induced a surprising amount of laughter, at least for me. 

Howard Stern, along with other comedians, has gone as far as to dub the Will Smith slap as the 21st century equivalent of the Zapruder film. Although I don’t necessarily agree with that equivalency, if the slap footage equals the Zapruder film, then “Will” equals “Best Evidence” by David Lifton. Like “Best Evidence,” “Will” is far from a perfect book, but it is nonetheless an in-depth look at a pre-slap-heard-around-the-world Will Smith and worth any fan’s time and money.