Will Smith became a hero for fellow dad bods everywhere (Picture: WireImage)

Will Smith was actually preparing for his role in slavery drama Emancipation when he went viral with his ‘dad bod’ photo last year. 

The King Richard actor sparked a social media trend in May 2021 when he uploaded a candid snap of himself posing in his underwear while claiming to be ‘in the worst shape of my life’. 

Other male celebrities related to Will’s body image struggles with Marlon Wayans and Dr Dre among those sharing similar photos of their natural physiques, while fans hopped on the trend and shared their own underwear ‘dad bod’ snaps. 

Will, 54, has finally revealed the story behind the photo and it was all related to his role in new movie Emancipation, in which he plays the formerly enslaved Peter who escapes from a plantation in Louisiana. 

Speaking to his three children – Trey, 30, Jaden, 24, and Willow, 22, – on Red Table Talk about his body transformation, the Oscar-winning actor said: ‘I posted the out of shape, the dad bod picture. The dad bod picture was my beginning of preparation to lose weight for Peter. 

‘I was probably 225-ish [pounds] when I started, and at the lowest on the movie, I got to 195.’ 

The actor claimed to be ‘in the worst shape of my life’ as he posed in his underwear (Picture: @willsmith, Instagram)

Will lost weight to take on the role of formerly enslaved man Peter (Picture: Apple TV+)

Explaining his drive to change his body for his movie roles, he continued: ‘For me, the physicality is a big part of what makes people go: ‘Whoa”. To be able to transition and manipulate your body as an actor is a big part of the suspension of disbelief for people.’ 

Will attributed the filming environment of swamps to his added weight loss, revealing: ‘It’s hot, it’s nasty. You’re actually in the swamp, so your hands are dirty so you don’t really want to grab food and eat.’ 

Elsewhere in his Red Table Talk chat, the Fresh Prince of Bel Air star recalled how he was spat on by a co-star on Emancipation as they ad-libbed a tense scene. 

He said: ‘One of the first days on set, there is a scene with one of the actors and he leans down in my face and says, “You a cold one, ain’t you?” and then he ad-libbed…,’ while turning to Willow and mimicking the act. 

‘Pulling a shocked expression, Smith added: ‘I was like, “Makeup!” No, but it was like … I was like, whoa, every actor on this set was taking it really, really seriously.’

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The actor sparked a trend with male celebrities embracing their natural bodies.