This Former Willy Wonka Child Star Was a Contestant on Jeopardy! and Viewers Lost Their Minds
Jeopardy! viewers got the chance to put their sleuthing skills to the test on Tuesday when they connected 58-year-old contestant Paris Themmen to the classic film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
As viewers started to guess, Themmen wasn't just “an entrepreneur and avid backpacker” but a famous one.
Twitter users were able to uncover Themmen’s contribution to ‘70s pop culture: He was Mike Teavee in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!
Need a refresher? Here's the Willy Wonka star then and now.
The TV-obsessed kid finally landed a national broadcast!
Of course, the social media reactions were almost better than the reveal itself.
Themmen has kept a low profile since his Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory days. His acting career mostly petered out after Willy Wonka—though he did play an uncredited “Fawning Fan” in a 2000 episode of Star Trek: Voyager.
He’s been a crew member for various projects, but today he’s best known for playing himself. In addition to his Jeopardy! stint (he came in second), Themmon has been a guest judge on Cake Wars, appeared on Top Chef: Just Desserts, and provided interviews for various documentaries about child stardom and Willy Wonka.
