After Being Shunned by Hollywood, Will Smith Sets His Sights on Video Games

Will Smith might be trying to climb out of being canceled, but Hollywood and fans worldwide are not allowing that to happen. Since the actor slapped comedian Chris Rock at the Academy Awards, there has been little to no positive news about him. Now, after being shunned from Hollywood completely, it appears he is targeting video games.

Will Smith as Deadshot in Suicide Squad — Credit: DC/Warner Bros.

Smith allowed his anger to get the best of him during the events of the Academy Awards in 2022. Based on a mild joke that Rock told the crowd about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, he assaulted the comedian on live television. To make matters worse, he also shouted, “Keep my wife’s name out of your f***** mouth.”

Though the actor held a squeaky clean image up to that point, his human nature was on full display, leading to many being heavily disappointed with him. The proverbial dominos began to fall on the man as many actors and creators distanced themselves. He was also subsequently banned from the Academy Awards for ten years.

Will Smith did return to acting in late 2022 when he portrayed Peter in the film Emancipation. The film should have been an emotionally jarring film about the horrors of slavery, but it mostly met with harsh criticisms and went mostly unmentioned overall. Though the film might not have been his best work, it could have also been criticized for his actions at the Academy Awards.

Simply put, Smith has a lot of work to do to make good with his fans regarding his cinematic output. Because of this, he has now switched gears to appear in a video game.

Will Smith Stars in ‘Undawn’

We don’t want to say outright that Will Smith needs money right now, but this partnership is odd. Smith won a Best Actor Academy Award in 2022 for his role in King Richard, which he also sullied by the already mentioned slap heard worldwide. However, it appears his acting roles have slowed down exponentially since then.

Despite the four listed movies he is currently working on via iMDB, there have been reports that Bad Boys 4 might be in trouble. The others could still be happening, but people might not want to see Smith appear in anything for a bit longer.

That said, Smith will now be the face of Undawn, a new RPG heading to Android, iPhone, and Steam. The video game sees Smith dressed in an outfit similar to what he wore in I Am Legend. Oddly enough, the story of this game also follows a zombie outbreak, and Smith’s character is dulling out plenty of firepower against the unstoppable hordes.

Will Smith is certainly not the first actor to use his likeness for a video game, as Keanu Reeves starred in Cyberpunk 2077, Cameron Monaghan stars in the Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order and the Jedi Survivor sequel, and Nicolas Cage will be joining Dead by Daylight. Still, this announcement is oddly timed, considering the world is still heavily angry at him.

Will Smith as Agent J — Credit: Universal Studios

We would also think that Will Smith might be too “big” of an actor to appear in a video game. That is no slight to anyone mentioned and the countless actors who have appeared in video games. We love Keanu Reeves and wish he starred in everything. Still, Smith might be hurting too deeply career-wise, leading him to traverse into the world of video games. His game is also not a major release, considering it’s mostly for phones.

Do you think Will Smith is starring in Undawn after Hollywood abandoned him? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!