You remember the kid. The one in the cowboy outfit, obsessed with cap guns and television screens, who eventually gets zapped into a million tiny pieces and stuck inside a glass box. That was Mike Teavee. But the guy behind the fringe, Paris Themmen, is way more interesting than a cautionary tale about too much screen time.
Actually, the irony is thick here.
While his character lived for the tube, the real-life Paris basically ditched the traditional Hollywood grind before he even hit twenty. People always search for paris themmen movies and tv shows expecting to find a massive IMDB page filled with 80s sitcoms or gritty dramas. Instead, you find a guy who decided that seeing the actual world was a lot more fun than pretending to live in a fictional one.
The Wonka Peak and the Broadway Roots
Most of us know him from the 1971 classic Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. He was eleven. He was also, by his own admission, a bit of a handful on set. Gene Wilder famously called the kids "a handful," but he had a specific brand of exasperation for Paris, who was known for being high-energy and constantly poking things he shouldn't.
But Wonka wasn't his first rodeo.
Before he ever stepped foot in Munich to film the chocolate factory scenes, Paris was a legitimate Broadway kid. We're talking Mame with Ann Miller in 1967 and The Rothschilds in 1970. He had about two dozen commercials under his belt too. Jif peanut butter was the first one. By the time he was a teenager, he’d already accomplished more than most actors do in a lifetime. Then, at fourteen, he just... stopped. He wanted to be a "normal" kid.
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The "Hidden" Credits: Star Trek and Beyond
If you look closely at paris themmen movies and tv shows, you’ll see he didn't disappear entirely. He just became the king of the "blink and you'll miss it" cameo.
Take Star Trek: Voyager, for example. In the year 2000, in an episode titled "Virtuoso," he plays a fawning fan. He doesn't have a massive monologue. He isn't the captain of a rival ship. He’s just there, a fun Easter egg for fans who know their trivia.
Then there’s the voice work. In the mid-90s, he did additional voices for the English dub of Macross Plus. It's a cult classic anime, and it’s one of those weird credits that makes sense once you realize Paris has always been a bit of a tech and sci-fi nerd.
He’s also popped up in:
- Screenplay (1999): A TV movie where he played a mailroom clerk.
- The Owner (2012): Where he didn't just act; he was the First Assistant Director.
- Something Borrowed (2011): He worked behind the scenes as a production assistant.
Honestly, his "behind the camera" career is just as busy as his time in front of it. He’s worked in commercial casting, film production, and even spent time as a business rep for Walt Disney Imagineering.
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The Jeopardy Incident
Probably his most famous "recent" TV appearance wasn't a scripted show at all. In 2018, he appeared on Jeopardy!.
The funny part? He didn't lead with "Hey, I'm Mike Teavee."
Alex Trebek introduced him as an "entrepreneur and avid backpacker." He came in second, which is respectable, but the internet absolutely lost its mind. Twitter (now X) was screaming because nobody on the show acknowledged he was a world-famous child star. It was the ultimate "if you know, you know" moment.
His wife, Nikki Grillos, is actually a two-time Jeopardy! champion, so the show is a big deal in their household. It sort of proves that Paris is more interested in being a real person with a real life than clinging to a golden ticket from fifty years ago.
Why He Doesn't Do More Movies
People ask this all the time. "Why didn't he stay in the business?"
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The truth is pretty simple: he got the travel bug. Paris has backpacked through over 60 countries. He started a travel agency. He’s been to Mount Everest base camp. When you’ve seen the sunrise over the Himalayas, standing on a soundstage in Burbank probably feels a little claustrophobic.
He still does the convention circuit, though. If you go to a Comic-Con, you’ll likely see him alongside the other "Wonka Kids." They’re all still friends. They call themselves the "Wonka Five." It’s a tight-knit group that shared a very specific, very weird experience in 1970s Germany, and they’ve stayed close through the decades.
What’s He Doing Now?
As of 2026, Paris is still living his best life. He runs a photography business and occasionally shows up in commercials. He’s also been involved in Willy’s Candy Spectacular: A Musical Parody, which made waves at the Edinburgh Fringe.
He isn't looking for a Marvel movie role. He’s not gunning for an Oscar. He’s basically the guy who won the game of "Child Stardom" by leaving it on his own terms. He kept his money, kept his sanity, and spent his time traveling the globe instead of chasing a fading spotlight.
Actionable Takeaways for Wonka Fans:
- Check the Background: Next time you watch The Good Wife or Star Trek: Voyager, keep your eyes peeled. He’s often lurking in the background as an extra just for the fun of it.
- Support the Originals: If you want an autograph, don't buy a fake one online. Paris runs Wonkapops.com, where he sells legitimate signed memorabilia.
- Watch the Reality Stuff: His appearances on Cake Wars and Top Chef: Just Desserts are actually pretty entertaining because he’s playing himself, not a character.
If you’re looking for a massive list of paris themmen movies and tv shows, you might be disappointed by the quantity. But if you look at the quality of the life he’s lived since Mike Teavee was shrunk down to size? That’s the real story. He didn't get stuck in the TV; he got out and saw the world instead.