Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor Says Will Smith Had Intense Work Ethic on "King Richard": 'Index Cards All Over the Place' (Exclusive)

12/14/2024 04:00 PM

On the set of the tennis biopic, Will Smith was "not allowing anybody to be mistreated," says Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor

For Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, costars don't get much better than Will Smith. 

On the set of the 2021 sports biopicKing Richard, about a young Venus and Serena Williams and their father and tennis coach Richard Williams, Ellis-Taylor, 55, recalls an intense work ethic from her onscreen husband. 

"I've heard him talk about his work ethic and his feeling like he may not be the best actor," she says. "But he's like, 'Nobody is going to beat me working hard.' And that has stayed with me."

Related: Serena Williams Expresses Interest in Seeing 'King Richard' Sequel Films: 'A Lot of Drama'

Smith, 56, led King Richard as both producer and star, with Reinaldo Marcus Green in the director's chair and screenwriter Zach Baylin penning the biopic. In addition to earning its real-life subjects' praise, it was nominated at the 2022 Academy Awards for six Oscars including Best Picture and Ellis-Taylor's supporting performance as the Williams sisters' mother Oracene "Brandy" Price — with Smith winning as lead actor. 

"First day of our reading the script," Ellis-Taylor remembers, Smith "just immediately walked in the door" prepared for the shoot ahead. "I mean, index cards all over the place, his breaking down his character, breaking down the film. Just granular stuff, just extraordinary."

Plus, "setting that example" as number one on the call sheet was clearly a priority for Smith, she says — "beyond that, being so incredibly kind to everybody, and not allowing anybody to be mistreated in his sight."

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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

Ellis-Taylor has taken Smith's example of kindness and hard work into her many projects since, which include Ava DuVernay's Origin, Tina Mabry'sThe Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat, Lee Daniels'The Deliveranceand Titus Kaphar's Exhibiting Forgiveness. Her supporting performance in RaMell Ross'Nickel Boys (in theaters now), the screen adaptation of Colson Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novel, is now nominated for a Critics Choice Award.

Related: Will Smith Wishes Jamie Foxx a Happy Early Birthday: 'Glad to See You Back Doing What You Love'

Of course, another old costar — Jamie Foxx in 2004 Ray Charles biopic Ray — also continues to inspire Ellis-Taylor. "With Jamie and Will, talk about dedication and commitment to the job at hand," she says. "Both of them have that."

Nickel Boys, which costars Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Hamish Linklater, Fred Hechinger and Daveed Diggs, is in theaters as of Dec. 14. Among Ellis-Taylor's upcoming projects is the movie adaptation of Todd Connor's autobiographical novel Liz Here Now.