Hilary Banks Almost Didn’t Make It Into ‘The Fresh Prince’
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Karyn Parsons reveals how her iconic role was almost cut from the sitcom.
Actress Karyn parsons recently shared on the All Bets Are Off podcast that her character, Hilary Banks, almost didn’t make it into The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.The show debuted in September 1990, but Parsons said Hilary was close to being cut from the early scripts.
Parsons said that Brandon Tartikoff, then president of NBC, considered the daughter role “redundant.” She claims Tartikoff told creators Andy and Susan Borowitz during the final network audition, “I think we should get rid of the daughter character. I don’t… it just seems redundant.”
The Borowitzes, according to Parsons, requested patience. “just wait. Wait until this girl comes in,” Parsons remembers them telling executives. Parsons then auditioned and “did my whole weird affectation that I guess nobody else was doing.” Her performance convinced the decision-makers to keep Hilary in the show.
The Evolution of Hilary Banks
“At first, maybe it’s too much. But it kept carrying me. It worked.”
Parsons explained that the initial character outline was minimal. “The character that was on the page when I got the show was very thin,” she said. “It said she was a model type,and it had her talking about Bruce and Demi and stuff. It didn’t have a whole lot going on.”
To flesh out the character, Parsons drew inspiration from people she knew. She mentioned growing up in Santa Monica, observing Malibu kids, and combining traits from her friend Leanne and her cousin Garland. She also gave credit to Judy Richmond, the show’s costume designer, for helping to bring the character to life.”Once I put the clothes on,my body started to change… my whole hips kind of fell and this lazy attitude just started to take over,” Parsons said.
Parsons admitted that her Hilary persona initially felt exaggerated.”At first,maybe it’s too much. But it kept carrying me. It worked.” She added that playing hilary was enjoyable as it allowed her to be uninhibited in ways she wasn’t in real life. “I was raised very much the good girl… and Hilary was the opposite,” Parsons explained. “she said whatever, unapologetic, I want this… she just said it and that was never me, so it was so fun to be able to be that person.”
