Will Smith Says He ‘Fell in Love’ with Stockard Channing Throughout His First Marriage in New Memoir

Will Smith is sharing a extra susceptible facet of himself in his new memoir Will, together with how he “fell in love” together with his Six Levels of Separation costar Stockard Channing throughout his first marriage.

Smith — who had simply welcomed son Trey together with his then-wife Sheree Zampino — remained in character even whereas off the set of the 1993 movie. As his romantic emotions for Channing grew, their relationship remained skilled, the star writes.

“Sheree and I had been within the first few months of our marriage with a brand-new child and for Sheree, I can think about that this expertise was unsettling to say the least,” writes Smith, 53, in his memoir, which can go on sale on Nov. 9 and is solely excerpted on this week’s challenge of PEOPLE. “She’d married a man named Will Smith and now she was dwelling with a man named Paul Poitier,” his character’s title within the film. “And to make issues worse, throughout taking pictures I fell in love with Stockard Channing.

“After the movie wrapped, Sheree and Trey and I moved again to L.A,” the actor and singer continues. “Our marriage was off to a rocky begin. I discovered myself desperately craving to see and communicate to Stockard.”

There are lots of such difficult and nuanced tales in Will. It’s a candid have a look at Smith’s often-difficult childhood; the tip of his relationship with Zampino, 53; his 23-year marriage to Jada Pinkett Smith, 50; and his journey as a father to Trey, 29, Jaden, 23, and Willow, 21. Regardless of his many years of success throughout the movie and music industries, Smith writes that he treasures his private relationships essentially the most. “To like and to be beloved is the best human reward,” he writes.

The Six Levels scene in Will just isn’t the primary time he’s opened up about his emotions for Channing. In a sit-down interview with Esquire in February 2015, Smith talked in regards to the “risks” of technique appearing.

everett assortment Will Smith and Stockard Channing in Six Levels of Separation

“With Six Levels of Separation, I bought a style early of the risks of going too far for a personality,” he informed the journal. “My character was in love with Stockard Channing’s character. And I truly fell in love with Stockard Channing.”

“Will Smith the human being did?” requested Esquire reporter Scott Raab.

Phil Mccarten/Invision/AP/Shutterstock Will Smith

“Will Smith. So the film was over and I went dwelling, and I used to be dying to see Stockard. I used to be like, ‘Oh no! What have I achieved?’ ” Smith informed Esquire. “That was my final expertise with Technique appearing, the place you’re reprogramming your thoughts. You’re truly enjoying round along with your psychology. You train your self to love issues and to dislike issues.”

He continued: “It’s a actually harmful place whenever you get good at it. However as soon as I had that have, I used to be like, No extra Technique appearing. I used to be spending—for Six Levels, I needed to carry out properly so badly that I used to be spending six and 7 and eight days in character earlier than taking pictures, and it’s important to watch out with that.”

When requested in regards to the story a few weeks later, Channing informed Web page Six that she was “flattered.”

“Effectively, I’m very flattered,” Channing informed the outlet at a “Six Levels of Stockard Channing” occasion in March 2015. “That’s an exquisite factor . . . I adored him from the primary time I laid eyes on him as a result of I assumed he was genuinely candy. I felt very protecting of him, as a result of it was his first huge job. It’s superb for me to listen to that he felt that approach, I’m delighted.”