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Will Smith has found an unexpected connection to Wales, and now he's playfully considering a name change to honor it.
During an interview with Lucy Owen on BBC Radio Wales, the 56-year-old actor and musician learned that both his childhood neighborhood and his mother's hometown trace their names to Welsh origins. Wynnefield, Pennsylvania—where Smith grew up—is named after Dr. Thomas Wynne, a Welsh physician. Meanwhile, Bryn Mawr, where his mother still lives, translates from Welsh to "big hill."
"So I'm Welsh?" Smith asked, amused. "Big Will lives in Big Hill. This is crazy."
Owen, picking up on the joke, responded, "Yes, Will! You are Welsh, and we are claiming you."
Smith laughed off the idea but offered a new moniker: "That might be my new name—Welsh Smith."
The exchange added a light moment to the actor's media tour as he promotes Based on a True Story, his first full-length album since Lost and Found in 2005. The tour, which launched in Morocco on June 25, will bring Smith to Cardiff Castle on August 25—just days after fellow legend Sir Tom Jones performs at the same venue.
The two once shared a set during a special episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Smith recalled the moment, saying, "It was magnificent... when someone with that iconic status walks in, the whole room shifts."
In the same radio segment, Smith freestyled a brief rap inspired by the conversation: "Big hill. Big Will. Big still!"
Though the interview was playful, Smith has recently addressed more serious topics. In a separate appearance on BBC Radio 1Xtra, he reflected on his personal evolution following the 2022 Oscars incident, calling it "bruitiful"—a mix of brutal and beautiful.
"Finding that way to be with my own humanity—not perfect, but real—is where the power is," he said. "The honesty and authenticity of who I am is better than the 'Will Smith' everyone thought they knew."