No, Colman Domingo and Will Smith weren’t friends in school
Colman Domingo says his path crossed with Will Smith back in school — and a surprising Philly story just resurfaced during a podcast chat.
Back at Overbrook High School in West Philly, Colman Domingo says he shared gym and science classes with a classmate who was already campus-famous: Will Smith. Smith was a year ahead and, even then, a local rapper performing with DJ Jazzy Jeff. Domingo told the story on the Nov. 3 episode of the Friends Keep Secrets podcast hosted by Benny Blanco, Lil Dicky and Kristin Batalucco.
“I wasn’t a cool kid,” … “We were never friends,”
Domingo remembered Smith as “the cool kid” while he saw himself as “the nerd,” and says he skipped the after-school gigs where classmates packed in to watch Smith perform.
Their paths didn’t cross again until years later, when Domingo was waiting tables at El Torito in Philadelphia and Smith had already broken big in music and acting. Smith didn’t recognize him at first; after a quick memory jog, Domingo says they hugged and went their separate ways.
Michael sequel talk
More recently, Domingo portrayed Joe Jackson in Michael, the Lionsgate biopic that stars Jaafar Jackson as his uncle, Michael Jackson. The film wraps around the Bad era, leaving the singer’s later decades untouched, and Lionsgate said in May that a sequel is in development.
Whether Domingo returns is up in the air. Speaking with Vanity Fair in September, he said no offer had come his way and questioned what chapters a follow-up would take on, noting the first movie ends before the first sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson — material any continuation would have to confront.