Alfonso Ribeiro Blames Playing Carlton On ‘Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air’ For Ending His Career
Alfonso Ribeiro recently got candid about how playing Carlton on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" impacted his career.
In an exclusive interview with "Closer Weekly" published last Friday, the actor-turned-TV-host was asked if he had to make any sacrifices for his career. That's when he revealed that "playing Carlton on 'Fresh Prince' became a sacrifice."
"I used to always say doing Carlton was the greatest and worst thing that ever happened to me. 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," he said.
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"The sacrifice was not having an acting career anymore."
He said that playing the role of the goofy character of Carlton Banks in the six seasons of the '90s sitcom typecasted him from future acting opportunities.
Although playing Carlton became a "sacrifice" for him at the time, he said he enjoyed the moments he spent with his co-stars.
"It was about the cast and spending time with them. Before every show, we would go into Will Smith's dressing room, and we'd play music and dance and just have a great energy buildup to get ready for the show. Those are some great memories of just being together," he shared.
(Photo : Variety/Getty Images)
At present, Ribeiro is "enjoying being a host and [is] very happy with it." The 52-year-old star currently hosts "Dancing With the Stars," "America's Funniest Home Videos" and "Jack Hanna's Passport."
His latest show featuring the "journey of a lifetime with Jack Hanna and his family" premiered on April 6 on ABC's "Weekend Adventure."
While he now enjoys a career in hosting, he said he is not closing his doors to returning to the acting scene.
"But, yes, I would go back to acting if it was exactly the right thing," he said.
Aside from hosting, Ribeiro is now busy with his family life, spending time with his wife Angela and their three children -- Alfonso Lincoln, Anders Reyn and Ava Sue.
His wife is also a stepmom to his daughter Sienna, whom he shares with his ex-wife, Robin Stapler.
