# Janet Hubert

Janet Louise Hubert (born January 13, 1956) is an American film and television actress and dancer. She is best known for playing the role of the original Vivian Banks on the sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air from its first season in 1990 until the end of its third season in 1993. Hubert was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in 1991. Her performance as Mignon on the digital series King Ester garnered her first Daytime Emmy Award nomination in 2020.

## Early life

Hubert was born in Chicago, Illinois and spent her early days growing up on Chicago's South Side. At the age of nine she moved with her family to rural Chicago. She won a scholarship to the Juilliard School in New York City, but did not complete her studies.

## Career

After performing in the national tour of Dancin', Hubert made her Broadway debut in 1981, in the ensemble of The First, a short-lived musical about Jackie Robinson. Hubert created the role of Tantomile in the original Broadway production of Cats, and also understudied Grizabella and Demeter. She left Cats in April 1983 to star in the national tour of Sophisticated Ladies, opposite Dee Dee Bridgewater and Gregg Burge. Hubert played Aunt Viv on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, the role she is most known for. After she was allegedly fired by the makers of The Fresh Prince, Hubert's character was recast and played by Daphne Maxwell Reid for the remainder of the show's run. At the time, Will Smith, the show's star, claimed that Hubert "brought her problems to work." Rumors then speculated that Smith had fired her following her departure. Hubert has since denied this, explaining that she had left the show after being informed that she had two months and a half of remaining on set and that she could not work on another project. Her role as Aunt Viv was subsequently played by actress Daphne Maxwell Reid.
Hubert was featured in a 2002 episode of Friends as Chandler's boss. In 2005, she began playing the recurring role of Lisa Williamson, mother of attorney Evangeline Williamson, on One Life to Live. Her character has made occasional appearances since then. She was featured as Michel Gerard's mother in an episode of the CW show Gilmore Girls. She has made appearances on episodes of All My Children, NYPD Blue, The Bernie Mac Show, and Tyler Perry's House of Payne, among others. In November 2018, it was announced that Hubert had been cast on the daytime soap opera, General Hospital; she made her debut as Yvonne on December 7, 2018.
Hubert appeared in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Reunion on HBO Max in November 2020. During the special, she and Smith spoke for the first time since her departure from the show. Hubert discussed issues regarding her personal life, which included domestic violence, and revealed she had not been fired from the show as largely believed. Smith admitted that he was neither "sensitive" nor "perceptive" to Hubert's situation and attributed his behavior to being "very young" and "immature" at the time. He has insisted that being a parent has taught him how to understand what she was dealing with and apologized for his actions. Hubert then joined the rest of the guests at the reunion.
Hubert appeared on FX's Pose in season 3 as a family member of Billy Porter's character, Pray Tell, alongside Jackée Harry and Anna Maria Horsford. In 2022, she appeared on The Ms. Pat Show as the title character's mother-in-law, Jewell.

## Personal life

In 1990, Hubert married James Whitten, who was verbally and physically abusive towards her until their split in 1994. From this marriage, she gave birth to a boy, Elijah Isaac Whitten. Hubert has been married to Larry Kraft since 2005.
She suffers from osteoporosis and is the ambassador of the National Osteoporosis Foundation.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1985 | Agent on Ice | Lola | |
| 1994 | New Eden | Ashtarte | TV movie |
| 1995 | White Man's Burden | Dinner Guest | |
| 1999 | California Myth | Lysistrata | |
| 2001 | 30 Years to Life | Joy's Mom | |
| 2004 | Proud | Larry's Mother | |
| 2004 | Christmas at Water's Edge | Mrs. Turner | TV movie |
| 2004 | Neurotica | The Neighbor | |
| 2013 | Mom | Judy Curtains | |
| 2015 | No Letting Go | Dr. Stacey Slater | |
| 2016 | Not Another Black Movie | Aunt Gloria | |
| 2019 | Christmas Belles | Whitley | TV movie |
| 2020 | JG and the BC Kids | Narrator/Blackbird/Stanley Leroy | |
| 2022 | Single Black Female | Denise | TV movie |
| 2022 | Fever | Grace | Short |
| 2022 | Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story | Aunt Duke | |
| 2023 | The Perfect Find | Monica | |
| 2024 | Snatched | Carolyn | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1988 | Hunter | Vanessa Riley | Episode: "The Fourth Man" |
| 1988 | 21 Jump Street | Councilwoman Travers | Episode: "Fun with Animals" |
| 1989 | Hooperman | Loretta Todd | Episode: "Look Homeward, Dirtbag" |
| 1989 | A Man Called Hawk | Serita | Episode: "Poison" |
| 1989 | One Life to Live | Miriam | Episode: "Episode #1.5370" |
| 1990 | Tales from the Crypt | Psyche | Episode: "Till Death" |
| 1990–93 | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air | Vivian Banks | Main Cast: Season 1–3 |
| 1992 | Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? | Herself | Episode: "She Took the Notes Right of My Mouth" |
| 1992–93 | Reasonable Doubts | Judge Mary Sims | Recurring Cast: Season 2 |
| 1993 | An Evening at the Improv | Herself/Host | Episode: "Janet Hubert, Glenn Super, Mary Anne Kelly, and more!" |
| 1994 | Dave's World | Elise | Episode: "Shel in Love" |
| 1994 | Coach | Karen Williams | Episode: "Blue Chip Blues" |
| 1995 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Elaine Baham | Episode: "What About Your Friends" |
| 1996 | The Faculty | Annette Freeman | Episode: "Somewhere There's Music" |
| 1996 | The Pretender | Madam Director | Episode: "The Paper Clock" |
| 1997 | The Jamie Foxx Show | Edwina DuBois | Episode: "Act Like You Love Me" |
| 1997 | Goode Behavior | Dr. Pamela Fordham | Episode: "Goode Lovin'" |
| 1997 | Lawless | Esther Hayes | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 1998 | NYPD Blue | Hiruut Kebede | Episode: "Weaver of Hate" |
| 1999 | All My Children | Alice Dawson | Episode: "20 May 1999" |
| 2001–02 | The Job | Adina Phillips | Recurring Cast |
| 2002 | Weakest Link | Herself | Episode: "TV Moms Edition" |
| 2002 | Gilmore Girls | Gisele Gerard | Episode: "Back in the Saddle Again" |
| 2002 | Friends | Ms. McKenna | Episode: "The One Where Emma Cries" |
| 2003–04 | The Bernie Mac Show | Leora | Guest Cast: Season 2–3 |
| 2005–10 | One Life to Live | Lisa Williamson | Regular Cast |
| 2007 | E! True Hollywood Story | Herself | Episode: "Will Smith" |
| 2010 | Life After | Herself | Episode: "Janet Hubert" |
| 2011 | Tyler Perry's House of Payne | Evelyn | Episode: "A Mother's Payne" |
| 2016–17 | If Loving You Is Wrong | Diane | Recurring Cast: Season 2 |
| 2018–20 | General Hospital | Yvonne Godfrey | Regular Cast |
| 2020 | 54 Below Premieres | Herself | Episode: "Norm Lewis: Christmastime Is Here!" |
| 2021 | Pose | Latrice | Episode: "Take Me to Church" |
| 2021 | Love Life | Donna Watkins | Recurring Cast: Season 2 |
| 2021 | The Last O.G. | Miss May Miller | Recurring Cast: Season 4 |
| 2022 | New Amsterdam | Dr. Palpa | Episode: "Two Doors" |
| 2022–24 | The Ms. Pat Show | Jewell Carson | Guest: Season 2, Recurring Cast: Season 4 |
| 2023 | Sweet Magnolias | Bev Decatur | Episode: "Someone I'm Longing to See" |
| 2023 | My Dad the Bounty Hunter | Empress Gurira (voice) | Recurring Cast: Season 2 |

### Music videos

| Year | Artist | Song | Role |
| 1986 | Sylvester | "Someone Like You" | Dancer |

### Stage

| Year(s) | Title | Role(s) |
| 1980 | Dancin' | Performer |
| 1981 | The First | Passenger/Opal/fan |
| 1982 | Cats | Tantomile |
| 1983 | Sophisticated Ladies | Performer |
| 1984 | Sleeping Beauty | Carameen |
| 2002 | Crowns | Wanda |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2013 | Grand Theft Auto V | Denise Clinton | |

## Awards

| Year | Nominee/work | Award | Category | Result |
| 1991 | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air | NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series | Nominated |
| 2014 | Grand Theft Auto V | Behind the Voice Actors Award | Best Vocal Ensemble in a Video Game | Nominated |
| 2020 | King Ester | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Digital Drama Series | Nominated |