Jaden Smith owns one pair of shoes, says Will Smith

NEW YORK, Feb. 13 (UPI) -- Will Smith feels very good about the fact that his 16-year-old son, actor Jaden Smith has "refused to be a slave to money."

In a recent interview with Esquire magazine, the Fresh Prince of Bell Air star dished on his first born's thriftiness and said he "so [respects] that" about him.

"The younger generation is less of an ownership generation, anyway," he said, adding that he came from a very different background than his offspring.

"It's such an interesting thing to watch, because I came from a middle-class background, but, you know, our lights and gas would be cut off from not paying the bill," he says. "I grew up in a houhttp://intranet2.upi.com/img/edit/link.pngse where you would need the kerosene heaters in the winter in case the bills didn't get paid. And he's from the complete other end of the spectrum. And it's so interesting to me that from growing up in that space, he could see the need for things in a way that he's rejecting. He's like, 'I'm not gonna let myself need things in that way.'"

Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith are also parents to 14-year-old Willow Smith. Both Willow and Jaden Smith have been in the news as of late for their controversial friendships -- Willow was photographed in bed with a 20-year-old actor last year and Jaden was believed to be dating Kylie Jenner -- and over comments they've made about controlling time, writing novels and education.

Will Smith will next in the romantic comedy drama Focus, which opens in theaters on Feb. 27.