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Will Smith is sharing a supportive message for Justin and Hailey Bieber as they prepare to welcome their first child.
The actor and father of three has long been supportive of the pop star, who shares a close friendship with his son, Jaden Smith. Now, he’s lending some fatherly advice in a new interview with ET’s Kevin Frazier.
“I have three kids and there’s really nothing anybody can tell you,” Smith said with a laugh. ”It’s like, we are all winging it.”
The 55-year-old Bad Boys: Ride or Die star first became a father in 1992 when his eldest son, 31-year-old Trey, was born. He went on to welcome son Jaden, 25, in 1998 and daughter Willow, 23, in 2000 with wife Jada Pinkett Smith. He shares Trey with his ex-wife, Sheree Zampino.
“The best advice I ever got was that they’re not your kids, you know?” Smith told ET on Wednesday. “Them kids belong to God, and you are a shepherd.”
Smith elaborated that his job as a parent is to nurture his children to “become what they already are” and “not trying to force what you want them to be on them.”
Justin recently reunited with Jaden at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival last month in Indio, California. The longtime friends made headlines when they were spotted adorably embracing with Bieber leaning in to plant a kiss on his pal’s cheek.
The music fest was a family affair with Will hitting the stage for a surprise appearance during J Balvin’s set, rapping his hit song, “Men in Black.” Justin was in attendance with his wife and made his own surprise appearance during Tems’ performance, singing “Essence.”
The couple just announced Hailey’s pregnancy last week in a heartwarming video of their recent vow renewal in Hawaii. ET has learned that Hailey is currently six months along.
Smith stepped out on Wednesday for a screening of his new film, which reunites him with Martin Lawrence as they reprise their beloved Bad Boys characters.
The franchise’s fourth installment follows the tried-and-true formula that has led to the series’ enduring legacy: Mike Lowrey (Smith) and Marcus Burnett (Lawrence) pull all kinds of hijinks as hardboiled detectives working for the Miami Police Department.
As for the latest sequel, Smith says that fans who love the classic Mike and Marcus banter are in for some new surprises as well as an exciting sequel overall as they “expanded the Bad Boys universe.”
“We took an aggressive shot with this movie, we tried to keep it exciting — we wanted it to be [a] full-on popcorn movie but we wanted it to grow with the characters,” he said of the film. “Not try to make the 25-year-old version of the movie — no, these dudes make it be age-appropriate.”
As a result, Smith joked that his stunt work was “terrible” this time around.
“We had a really, really great stunt team,” he teased. “I still want it to be authentic, so I know how to adjust, you know, I know ‘Ehh, maybe it’s not a four punch and a flip and a run and jump over a thing.’ Maybe we take the jump out in a couple of the shots.”
Either way, fans can still expect a high-octane film that delivers the thrills they have come to expect.
“For me, it has to stand on its own,” Smith said of returning to his Bad Boys role. “What I told myself is I would never do to the fans is make a sequel just because it would be cool to have a sequel.”
He added, “This one lives up to my standards.”
Joining the cast is Tiffany Haddish, while Vanessa Hudgens will reprise her role as Kelly.
For her part, Hudgens recently announced her own pregnancy with husband Cole Tucker. Now, Smith tells ET that Hudgens and the filmmakers had to get creative to finish filming with her baby on the way.
“The strike happened, so you know, when she came back and we had to finish the movie after the strike, she was really trying to figure out how to shoot it,” he shared.
Gushing that the 35-year-old High School Musical alum is “a hard worker” who “wants to get it done,” he added, “I was like, ‘No, don’t worry. You’ll always be able to tell your child that they were in this scene with you.'”
Bad Boys: Ride or Die is in theaters on June 7.
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