People.com Entertainment TV Janet Hubert Gets Standing Ovation at Will Smith Event as He Talks Their 'Healing' Reconciliation The emotional moment comes one year after Will Smith and Janet Hubert reconciled their decades-long feud during HBO Max's Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reunion special By Benjamin VanHoose Benjamin VanHoose Twitter Benjamin VanHoose is an Associate Editor on the Movies team at PEOPLE. He's worked at PEOPLE for over three years as a writer and reporter across our Entertainment, Lifestyle and News teams, covering everything from the Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard trial to the Oscars. He regularly covers red carpet events and has interviewed stars like Drew Barrymore, Ryan Reynolds and Kirsten Dunst. He previously worked as a copy editor at Topix Media Lab. People Editorial Guidelines Published on November 10, 2021 12:54 PM Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Will Oliver & Kings Theatre Janet Hubert received an emotional, two-minute standing ovation from Will Smith fans on Tuesday night. During the "Will Smith: An Evening of Stories with Friends" event hosted at Kings Theatre in New York City's Brooklyn, Smith recalled memorable life lessons while discussing his new memoir, Will. At one point in the evening, the actor pointed out two of his Fresh Prince of Bel-Air costars in attendance: Karyn Parson, who played Hilary, and Hubert, who was the "original Aunt Viv," as Smith referred to her. Hubert, 65, got a standing ovation from the excited crowd, waving and whistling to the cheering fans. "Stand up, Janet. Get your flowers!" Smith said. "Take it in! Take that in!" The touching moment comes one year after the Fresh Prince HBO Max reunion special, in which Hubert and Smith sat down for the first time in 27 years to sort out the issues that led to a contentious back-and-forth in the media following Hubert's exit from the sitcom in 1993. Smith addressed the reconciliation during the event Tuesday, telling attendees, "That is such a beautiful thing. Thank you all. You know, Janet and I — I'm assuming you all saw Janet and I a few months ago on the 30th anniversary of Fresh Prince, for the first time talked out the issues that we had had." "It was one of the most healing experiences of my life, and it was a big part of the place that working on this memoir got me into," he continued. "I just wanna thank you, Janet, for being open. That's a big part of the exploration that I wanted to do in this book." Will Smith Reveals 'Feud' with Janet Hubert 'Troubled Me for Nearly 30 Years' Will Oliver & Kings Theatre Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Hubert recently reflected on reconciling with Smith, telling PEOPLE that while the two were close to tears on the TV reunion special that aired in November 2020, she has felt a sense of peace since they talked out their differences. "If there are tree roots in the drain, the water doesn't flow," she said, adding: "The drain has been snaked." RELATED VIDEO: Fresh Prince Reunion — Will Smith and Janet Hubert Discuss Her Contentious Exit 27 Years Later Smith previously said that he felt "threatened" — not only by Hubert, but by the world, in his 20s — prior to her departure. But by painting the actress as problematic after the third season (her last), Hubert's career took a notable hit. These days, Hubert is booked and busy — and, most importantly, at peace. "I don't know if it's a comeback," she told PEOPLE. "I haven't come from anywhere; I've been here. It's just now … I always had to prove myself. I also had to walk in with a presupposition, and I don't have to do that anymore, which is really lovely."