Will Smith to Join Kristen Stewart in Warner Bros. FOCUS

Variety reports that Will Smith is in final discussions to star in Warner Bros upcoming film FOCUS. The actor will join Kristen Stewart in the 'con artist' picture. According to the report, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone were the original leads up for the parts.

The project, written and directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, centers on "an inexperienced female con artist who teams up with a more seasoned male one." Denise DiNovi will produce.

Sources tell the site that Warner Bros was reluctant to move ahead on the film without an A-list actor in the lead. Brad Pitt and Ben Affleck were among those being originally considered.


In the late 1980s, Smith achieved modest fame as a rapper under the name The Fresh Prince. In 1990, his popularity increased dramatically when he starred in the popular television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The show ran for nearly six years (1990-1996) on NBC and has been syndicated consistently on various networks since then.

In the mid-1990s, Smith moved from television to film, and ultimately starred in numerous blockbuster films. He is the only actor to have eight consecutive films gross over $100 million in the domestic box office, and Ten consecutive films gross over $150 million internationally and the only one to have eight consecutive films in which he starred open at #1 spot in the domestic box office tally.

Fifteen of the nineteen fiction films he has acted in have accumulated worldwide gross earnings of over $100 million, and four took in over $500 million in global box office receipts. As of 2012, his films have grossed $6.36 billion in global box office.He received Best Actor Oscar nominations for Ali and The Pursuit of Happyness.

He will next be seen on the big screen in Sony's "After Earth."

Photo Credit: Monica Simoes