Will Smith revealed that he turned down the chance to star in one of Christopher Nolan’s most iconic movies because he “didn’t get” the plot.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor told British radio station Kiss Xtra Sunday that when Nolan brought him the mind-bending script for Inception, he didn’t understand it.
“I don’t think I’ve ever even said it publicly before, and I’m going to say it now because we’re opening up to one another,” Smith said. “Chris Nolan brought me Inception first, and I didn’t get it.”
“I’ve never said that out loud,” he admitted.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nolan had originally given the Inception script to Brad Pitt, telling him he had 48 hours to respond to an offer to star in it.
When Pitt didn’t commit, he moved on to Smith, who also rejected the offer. Nolan ultimately landed on Leonardo DiCaprio, who starred in the film as Cobb alongside Cillian Murphy and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
An executive with knowledge on the casting decisions told The Hollywood Reporter that big stars like Smith “are used to having people wait a year or more” before they commit to a project, saying that “they don’t usually have to board a moving train,” as with Nolan.
Inception grossed over $800 million at the global box office, becoming one of Nolan’s highest-grossing movies after The Dark Knight and Oppenheimer, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2023.
Smith also reminisced about other films he’s regretted turning down, like the role of Neo in Lana and Lilly Wachowski’s 1999 film, The Matrix.
Smith was coming off the success of Michael Bay’s 1995 film Bad Boys, which was his first leading role in a major blockbuster film, and simply wasn’t convinced by the Wachowskis’ pitch for The Matrix.
“That was one of my beautiful scars,” Smith joked, referring to the music video for his 2025 song “Beautiful Scars” with Big Sean, in which they parodied The Matrix, Smith taking on the role of Neo.
Instead of The Matrix, Smith chose to star in Barry Sonnenfeld’s Wild Wild West, which was considered a box office flop.
“I’m not proud of it,” he admitted in a 2019 video on his YouTube channel.
The part was ultimately snatched up by Keanu Reeves, who went on to star in three more movies in The Matrix franchise. The first Matrix film grossed around $460 million worldwide.
“As it turns out, they’re geniuses,” he said of the Wachowskis. “But there’s a fine line in a pitch meeting between genius and what I experienced in the meeting.”
Smith said the two roles he passed over that “hurt” him the most may be difficult to pitch.
“Now that I think about it, it’s those movies that go into those alternate realities, they don’t pitch well,” he said. “But I’m hurt by those two.”
