(16 Mar 2022) WILL SMITH, AUNJANUE ELLIS, QUESTLOVE AMONG NATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEW HONOREES Actor Will Smith says changing his priorities lead to his successful portray of the father of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams in the drama “King Richard.” “I’m learning to pay attention to the right things, you know?” he said on the red carpet Tuesday (15 March) at the National Board of Review Awards ceremony, continuing, “And, you know, life is going do what it do, you know, and there will be some beautiful, glorious days and it’ll be balanced out with some of the other ones,” Smith, who was honored as best actor, shared his motivation for the performance, saying he was not going to worry about box-office success or awards. Instead, he would focus on the essence of the story. “My attention is fully and completely locked on honoring Venus and Serena and their family. And you know, winning or not winning. I’m just not – I’m not even taking my head there. I feel completely humbled and honored to be able to shine a light on their journey.” Smith’s on-screen wife, played by Aunjanue Ellis, who the NBR named best supporting actress, found the recent attention “surreal.” Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson was honored for his documentary “Summer of Soul.” Questlove called accolades for the film the by-product of “daydreaming.” “I once watched an episode of ‘Soul Train,’ where Michael Jackson told Don Cornelius daydreaming was his pastime. And when I first saw it, I
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