Will Smith, who started his career back in the 1980s, has marked several successful years in the industry and continues to pave the path for more. However, the Fresh Prince will always be at the heart of the actor’s long-standing and versatile career. The rapper decided to make a leap of faith and thrive as a solo artist. He also played an exaggerated version of himself in a wacky sitcom titled The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Looking back at it now, these were Smith’s prime years. However, the actor would beg to differ.

A saying familiar to those who are bedazzled by movie stars is Allan Carr’s “Never meet your heroes.” This could be explained by your idols not really being the version you fell in love with or that they might be $2.8 million in debt with an IRS notice hanging on their refrigerator.

Was Will Smith really $2.8 million in debt?

As the Fresh Prince made his transition from rapping to acting, he was met with little to no skepticism and unprecedented popularity. This continued in the theaters and a few movies later, Will Smith was deemed Mr. July. However, the house of cards soon came crashing down when it was reported in 2014 that the IRS had accused him of not paying his taxes. With his quickly growing wealth, the actor decided to splurge on luxurious items. And this would have been fine if there was a dedicated team managing his finances. However, Smith lacked both and soon enough, he was millions in debt.

Being the ever-candid person that he is, Smith talked about the entire fiasco in his autobiography titled ‘Will Smith: A Biography’. He confessed that he kept spending without making any meaningful investments, which ultimately resulted in him overlooking his taxes.

While his family was understandably shocked, Will Smith recalls that he hopped on back to work. Given how no further action was taken, he must have cleared all his dues. And looking at how no further action was taken and Smith continued to grow in wealth, he must have also switched up his financial team.

What is the Fresh Prince’s net worth?

While his net worth had always been a subject of intrigue, it was after the Oscar slap debacle that netizens looked at it with newfound interest. But to their dismay, Will Smith still remains one of the wealthiest people in the world. With an estimated net worth of $350 million, the actor makes enough to sustain it with just his entrepreneurial endeavors.

Akin to his net worth is his fee. For years, the actor has been listed among the highest-paid actors around the world. If the reports about him making around $40-$80 million with just one movie are true, then an IRS notice should be the least of his worries now.

Did you know that Kanye West was in more debt than Will Smith before he created Yeezys? Let us know in the comments below.