Garcelle Beauvais, who is soon set to return to Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for its upcoming twelfth season, has provided fans with some insight on the moment she decided to “exit stage left” with regards to her and Will Smith’s brief relationship in the ‘90s.
On a recent episode of the Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang podcast, Beauvais looked back on what she described as a relationship that wasn’t of the “long-lasting” variety. As detailed in a subsequent report from MadameNoire, Beauvais first met Smith on the set of Fresh Prince.
According to Beauvais, her decision to “exit” came about after realizing that things were getting serious between Will and Jada, who would go on to marry in 1997 and remain a couple to this day.
“I remember one day calling [Will] and he was in the car. And his son, with Sheree, [they] were in the back,” Beauvais said on the podcast, referencing Sheree Zampino and Will’s son, Trey. “So you know, he picked up on the car or Bluetooth or whatever it was back in the day, or speakerphone—whatever it was—and he said, ‘Hey, how are you doing?’ And I said, ‘I’m great.’”
From there, Beauvais said she heard “this little voice in the background” ask Will if it was “Miss Jada” on the phone. “And that’s when I was like okay—I’m not the only one. Exit stage left,” she said, laughing. Hear the full episode below.
As Real Housewives enthusiasts will note, both Garcelle and Sheree (who’s now also a star on the reality franchise) previously discussed the Oscar-winning King Richard actor during a 2020 episode of the series.
Beauvais this week released her new book, titled Love Me As I Am. In it, per an excerpts-filled piece from Us Weekly, she also gave fans some Michael Jordan intel. While reflecting on her earlier modeling days, Beauvais recalled meeting the legendary NBA star and being “impressed” with him. When Jordan offered to have her join him on a trip to Hawaii, however, Beauvais declined.
“I was impressed by how tall and handsome he was,” Beauvais said. “He took me on a golf date after the shoot and showed me how to hold a club properly and swing. Like a naive little girl, I was ‘clutching my pearls’ and shocked by the idea of going to Hawaii with a man I had just met.” Further addressing this moment, Beauvais added, “I blew that one!”
Love Me As I Am is out now. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ latest season, meanwhile, will premiere on May 11 via Bravo. Also featured in this year’s cast are Erika Jayne, Kyle Richards, Lisa Rinna, and more.
