the real chris gardner from pursuit of happiness

It was a fight worthy of the character Smith was playing. He told producers he was “emotionally incapable” of making the film without Jayden in the role. When the studio asked for a 10th audition, the film’s director, Gabriele Muccino, put his foot down. To compensate for the conflict of interest, Jayden, who was six-years-old at the time, had to audition nine times. But Smith had to fight for Jayden to be cast, due to concerns of nepotism by executives involved in the movie. The pair’s natural love and care shines through the screen. It’s hard to imagine Smith acting opposite anyone other than his real-life son, Jayden. Part of the attraction to Gardner’s story was the American Dream, combined with his unwavering care for his son, his desire to never give up. It felt to me that the reason that America has been successful in this world is based on the idea that Gardner is possible.” There was a look in his eyes, a confidence, and a strength, after having traveled that journey. “I saw the 20-20 piece on Chris’ life, and the power of the story blew me away. In an interview with AALBC, Smith explained his reasons for choosing the role:

Coincidentally, these portrayals earned Smith his only two Oscar nominations, both for Best Actor, in 20.

Five years later, in 2006, he was playing Chris Gardner. In 2001 he played the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. Will Smith has only starred in two biographies. After 30 years in the finance industry, a heartbreaking loss led him to take his own advice - to pursue his own version of happiness. Years after the film’s conclusion, Gardner turned away from riches, and away the successful business he’d developed. And the man behind the story is Chris Gardner.ĭespite his rags to riches tale, money isn’t everything for Gardner. Does the story sound familiar? The movie is The Pursuit of Happyness. A Ferrari once owned by sporting legend Michael Jordan.īefore the wealth and success, though, the salesman spent a year homeless on the streets of San Francisco, with his toddler son, moving between homeless shelters, park benches, and public toilets. Instinctually the salesman approached the man with two questions: “ What do you do, and how do you do it?” Those two questions sparked a chain of events that led to the salesman’s rapid rise in fortune, a bestselling memoir, a Hollywood film about his life, millions in the bank, and his own Ferrari. Stirred by what he saw, he decided to approach the car’s owner, who was dressed to impress in a tailor-fit suit. As the salesman was walking by, the car pulled up to the curb. It was a red Ferrari that mesmerized a 27-year-old struggling salesman one day in the early 80s, in a parking lot outside of San Francisco General Hospital.

The real chris gardner from pursuit of happiness