What Led to ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ Star James Avery’s Unfortunate Passing & How He’s Remembered

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James Avery was beloved for playing Philip “Uncle Phil” Banks on the hit ‘90s series “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” The actor tragically passed away on December 31, 2013, at 68. But his memory lives on, and a light will be shone on his beautiful life again this week.

James Avery’s Tragic Passing 

Avery died at Glendale Memorial Medical Center, TVInsider reports. His body was cremated, and his ashes were “scattered into the ocean off the coast of Los Angeles,” they report. 

TMZ revealed that Avery’s autopsy listed his cause of death as cardiorespiratory arrest, and he “suffered from severe coronary heart disease – along with end-stage kidney disease and type-2 diabetes.” Avery’s death came after complications from open-heart surgery, which he had just over a month earlier. “Avery had surgery on November 11 and died Tuesday evening at a hospital in Glendale, California,” his manager, Toni Benson, said, CNN reports.

Avery was survived by his wife of 26 years, Barbara; his mother, Florence Avery; and his stepson, Kevin Waters, BBC News reports. But he also left behind friends who felt like family. After the news of Avery’s death, social media was flooded with tributes, including ones from his former co-stars. Alfonso Ribeiro used X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts, writing, “I’m deeply saddened to say that James Avery has passed away. He was a second father to me. I will miss him greatly,” BBC News reports. 

Will Smith’s Jada Pinkett Smith wrote on Facebook, “Lost yet another friend. Our condolences to aunt Florence (his mother), Miss Barbara (his wife), and all those who loved him. Rest in peace James.”

How James Avery Will Be Honored on DWTS

It has been 13 years since Avery’s death, but he will be remembered again tonight, Tuesday, October 20, when “Dancing with the Stars” Season 35 competitor, Tatyana Ali, honors him with her Viennese waltz performance for Dedication Night. Her former “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” co-star Ribeiro, who competed on Season 19 and won, and who now co-hosts the ABC dance competition, will also participate in the special segment. 

Ali will dance alongside her partner Jan Ravnik. She spoke about her decision to dedicate the performance to Avery in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “There’s not anywhere that I go, if somebody recognizes me or comes up to talk to me about Fresh Prince, they always bring up James,” she said. “He was the heart of the show. He was a mentor to me. Everything I am as an artist had to do with all the things I learned while working with him. He was that kind of person who just shared his passion for the arts with the people that he loved.”

She continued, “And I’m on this show with Alfonso, 30-something years later after we did Fresh Prince together when we were really kids, and when I heard about this Dedication Night, there’s nobody else I thought of: It had to be James.” Of the Dedication Night performance, Ali said, “It’s been emotional and really painstaking, but in a good way. I want this to be the best one.”