Alfonso Ribeiro Says His ‘Fresh Prince Of Bel Air’ Role Ended His Acting Career

ABC/Michael Ansell

In a new interview with Closer Weekly, Alfonso Ribeiro said his iconic role in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air as Carlton Banks was a “sacrifice” for his acting career.

“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,” Ribeiro said.

“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. The sacrifice was not having an acting career anymore.”

Despite that downer of a sentiment, Ribeiro does have favorite memories from filming.

“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 recalled.

The 52-year-old is currently co-hosting Dancing with the Stars with Julianne Hough after winning season 19 in 2014.

“I’m enjoying being a host and am very happy with it. But, yes, I would go back to acting if it was exactly the right thing,” he said.

He also hosts America’s Funniest Home Videos and Jack Hanna’s Passport, both on ABC.

“My happiest moments, career-wise, are winning Dancing With the Stars and now becoming host of Dancing With the Stars. And after winning Dancing With the Stars, I got the opportunity to do the show that I always wanted to do – America’s Funniest Home Videos, Ribeiro said.