Will Smith‘s first marriage was tested by his emotional crush on actress Stockard Channing (pictured). Smith opened up about his emotional crush on Channing in his memoir titled WILL.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star was in the first few months of his marriage to Sheree Zampino when he played con artist Paul Poitier in the film Six Degrees of Separation.
The movie was inspired by the real-life story of David Hampton, a homeless homosexual who stole from wealthy elites on the Upper East Side. They welcomed him into their homes when he said he was the son of actor Sidney Poitier.
Smith said Method acting help him to become Paul Poitier in the flesh. He reveals he couldn’t shake the character he played.
He wrote:
“Sheree and I were in the first few months of our marriage with a brand-new baby and for Sheree, I can imagine that this experience was unsettling to say the least. She’d married a guy named Will Smith and now she was living with a guy named Paul Poitier. And to make matters worse, during shooting I fell in love with Stockard Channing.
“After the film wrapped, Sheree and (son) Trey and I moved back to L.A. Our marriage was off to a rocky start. I found myself desperately yearning to see and speak to Stockard.”
In an Esquire interview in February, 2015, Smith said “my character was in love with Stockard Channing’s character, and I actually fell in love with Stockard Channing.”
He added:
“So the movie was over and I went home, and I was dying to see Stockard. I was like, ‘Oh no! What have I done?’ That was my last experience with Method acting, where you’re reprogramming your mind. You’re actually playing around with your psychology. You teach yourself to like things and to dislike things. It is a really dangerous place when you get good at it.”
