Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star reveals why beloved role killed his acting career

Alfonso Ribeiro is currently best known for his hosting duties on the long-running Dancing With the Stars, but for many, he’ll always be Carlton Banks from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

In a new interview with Closer Weekly, however, Ribeiro highlights the negative impact the role had on his career.

“Playing Carlton on Fresh Prince became a sacrifice,” Rebeiro told the outlet. “I used to always say doing Carlton was the greatest and worst thing that ever happened to me.”

By the time of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Ribeiro was already an experienced actor, having had a long run on the sitcom Silver Spoons and appearing in TV shows like A Different World and Magnum P.I.

But his role as naive Carlton Banks, in which he largely served as the straight man to Will Smith’s over-the-top character, is easily his most famous. Ribeiro appeared on the show for all six seasons and became something of a cultural phenomenon.

While Smith went on to have an explosive film career in the likes of Bad Boys and I Am Legend, the rest of the cast didn’t have quite as much luck; Ribeiro had a long-running stint on the sitcom In the House and ventured into voice acting but never found the same success as he did on Fresh Prince.

“It was one of the greatest roles that I ever was fortunate enough to play, but it was also the role that stopped me from acting again because people couldn’t see me as anything else,” Ribeiro explained. “The sacrifice was not having an acting career anymore.”

In fact, many fans today may not even realize they recognize Alfonso Ribeiro’s Carlton Banks. His iconic “Carlton Dance” exploded in pop culture in recent years. It even briefly became a Fortnite emote, though Ribeiro had no role in that creation. In fact, he’s said he hates when fans ask him to do the dance.

While his acting career may not be what he or his fans hoped for, Ribeiro has found continued success both in front of and behind the camera. In addition to winning Dancing With the Stars in 2017 before returning as a host, he’s had a strong track record as a director, working on the shows All of Us and Are We There Yet?

While Ribeiro may not be starring in new sitcoms these days, there are still plenty to keep up with. If you’re looking to find something to make you laugh, you can check out all our coverage on Young Sheldon, including the finale’s biggest Easter egg or its upcoming spin-off.