Pugsley From The '90s Addams Family Movies Is Unrecognizable Today
The following article mentions allegations of child abuse.
It's hard to think of Halloween without thinking about the Addams Family, the spooky fictional brood that's been entertaining families with cartoons, TV shows, and movies since 1932. However, many would say that the 1991 movie "The Addams Family" and its 1993 sequel "Addams Family Values," have become the fan-favorites, considering that they're still Halloween movie staples 30 years after they were released. "The Addams Family" was actually a surprise hit when it premiered in theaters, raking in $191 million at the box office, despite it only costing $30 million to make. While the sequel only made $48 million, it's nonetheless regarded as a cult classic as well.
The two movies star Angelica Huston and the late Raúl Juliá as the legendary Morticia and Gomez Addams, while Christopher Lloyd plays the hilarious Uncle Fester. The now iconic character of Wednesday was Christina Ricci's breakthrough role before she went on to find major success as an adult. Of course, there's Wednesday's brother in the film, Pugsley, who was played by Jimmy Workman when he was just about 11 years old.
In fact, "The Addams Family" was the first movie Workman ever did, and is still the role that he's best known for to this day. Workman did grow up since those mysterious and spooky days on set, which is probably why he's basically unrecognizable today. So what has he been up to over the years? Let's break it down.
Jimmy Workman got the role of Pugsley Addams by accident
Jimmy Workman is one of the rare celebrities who just happened to "get discovered" one day. That's because Workman didn't even audition for "The Addams Family" when he got the role of Pugsley. If you're wondering how that happened, the film's director Barry Sonnenfeld told The Guardian that Workman was basically just in the right place at the right time. "He came to the auditions with his sister who was trying out for Wednesday Addams," Sonnenfeld explained. "We spotted him in the waiting room."
Workman apparently took to being an actor right away. When promoting "The Addams Family" in 1991, he told Bobbi Wygant, "I love doing the movie because I've never done one before and it was a lot of fun to me. I met a lot of new people." The then 11-year-old also said he didn't mind hanging around on set in between takes, but that he wasn't a fan of doing school on set.
Workman clearly did a great job because he got to return for the sequel, "Addams Family Values," where he performed in the infamous "Eat Me" song and dance number while dressed as a giant turkey. The movie's screenwriter Paul Rudnick later revealed that the scene took two weeks to film and was professionally choreographed. For Workman, the dance was especially tricky to do in the turkey costume though, because "it was actually pretty hard to maneuver the suit," he admitted in another interview.
Jimmy Workman quit acting when he got older
If you're wondering why you haven't seen much of Jimmy Workman since "Addams Family Values," it's probably because he retired from acting almost two decades ago. Per his IMDb, Workman's last acting job was in the 2005 film "The Biggest Fan." The majority of Workman's acting career happened in the '90s though, after he rose to fame in "The Addams Family." He even had his next project lined up right after that movie too. When asked about his "first big role" by Bobbi Wygant in 1991, he revealed, "There's going be another one soon ... Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to be directing a TV movie called 'Christmas in Connecticut.'"
Workman continued to get smaller roles for a few years after "Christmas in Connecticut," including one in 1997's "As Good As It Gets." However, he began acting less as he got older. During that time, Workman was said to have grown much taller and he lost around 40 pounds. That could have resulted in him getting less work because he no longer resembled the child star he was when he became famous.
Regardless, Workman didn't seem to mind aging, because when he turned 18, he got access to the money he made from "The Addams Family" movies. That could have also contributed to him acting less because he was then apparently busy having fun. "I went through a stage where I went buck wild," he told People, but added, "I got all my partying out [of my system]."
Jimmy Workman works behind the scenes in Hollywood
Just because you don't see Jimmy Workman in front of the camera anymore doesn't mean he's left Hollywood. In fact, Workman is still working in the entertainment industry but behind the scenes in the transportation department for different movies and TV series. It appears that he's been serving as a driver or transportation coordinator/captain since at least 2009, which is when he worked on the "Star Trek" film. In 2022, Workman was part of the crew for "The Last Manhunt."
Workman also seems to be part of the Teamsters Local 399 union, which, per their Instagram bio, represents those who work in show business as drivers, animal handlers and trainers, wranglers, locations, casting, dispatchers, and more. In 2016, they shared a photo of Workman with some members in front of trucks used on a Hollywood set. Workman has since posted photos of trucks on his Facebook too.
It seems that finding a job outside of acting has been a good fit for Workman since he apparently doesn't feel connected to the craft. When asked by Visionary Minds TV what advice he has for aspiring actors in 2019, he replied, "As far as it is for being an actor, I never was one so ... but I have a lot of friends that are and family." He did go on to say that those who want to find stardom should "follow their dreams" and put everything they have into making it happen.
Jimmy Workman was briefly back in the spotlight due to family drama
Jimmy Workman isn't the only famous person in his family, considering that Ariel Winter is his younger sister. Winter, whose real name is Ariel Winter Workman, is best known for playing Alex Dunphy on the hit ABC show "Modern Family," as well as for voicing the Disney cartoon "Sofia the First." While Winter has had a rather long and successful career already by her mid-20s, she apparently doesn't regard her time as a child star as fondly as her brother does.
In 2012, when Winter was 14 years old, she publicly accused her and Jimmy's mother, Chrystal Workman, of both physical and emotional abuse. Chrystal (sometimes spelled "Crystal") had allegedly been a horrible "stage mom" who pushed her kids into show business, including Jimmy and Winter's other sister, Shanelle. Due to those accusations, the then 34-year-old Shanelle was appointed as Winter's guardian after Winter was removed from their parents' home. Jimmy defended their mom though, by saying Winter's allegations were untrue.
It seems that despite Jimmy quitting acting himself as an adult, he has no hard feelings about how his mom ran his own child star career. That's because when discussing the abuse allegations against her, he told Us Weekly, "This is a mother who does everything for her kids." E! News reported that Jimmy even wrote a letter to a judge, where he claimed he never witnessed either of his parents abuse Winter, and that the whole ordeal had made him sick.
If you or someone you know may be the victim of child abuse, please contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.
The Addams Family star fought for custody of his sister Ariel Winter
Jimmy Workman continued to make headlines in 2013 because of the custody drama surrounding his famous sister Ariel Winter and their mother Chrystal Workman. "The Biggest Fan" actor had involved himself by publicly defending Chrystal against Winter's accusations of abuse. However, when Jimmy was approached by paparazzi from TMZ while waiting outside court, he then shared that he actually wanted their father, Glenn Workman, to care for the then-teenage Winter. "Hopefully my father gets custody of my sister, which it should be," Jimmy said.
Jimmy had also shared that he didn't think that his other sister, Shanelle Workman, was fit to be a guardian for Winter. While he originally said that he just wanted his family to work out their differences and come back together, he decided to take his own legal action in 2013. That's when Jimmy filed for custody of Winter himself, presumably because he had thought that he was then the next best option if she wouldn't go home to their mother. According to TMZ, Jimmy claimed in court that Shanelle was a bad influence on Winter and that she was "exploiting" Winter's money and fame so she could party and promote her acting school.
Shanelle responded through her lawyer, who told TMZ, "It's interesting how Jimmy and Chrystal talk about repairing their fractured family, and then make allegations like this." Winter eventually became emancipated and became estranged from both Jimmy and their mother.
Jimmy Workman now has his own (non-Addams) family
Jimmy Workman may be best known for being part of "The Addams Family," yet he actually has a family of his own now, considering that he has a wife and three kids. According to his Facebook, Workman tied the knot with Hayley Freudiger-Workman in September 2020, in what looked to be a small, private ceremony. In a 2021 post celebrating their anniversary, Workman gushed, "Thank you for an amazing first year of marriage, I love you more than you know."
The couple went on to welcome a baby soon after their wedding, because in July 2021, Workman shared on Facebook that their daughter, Paisley, was born. "Our family is growing and I could not be happier ... as they say here's to one more member of the wolf pack," he wrote in a post. Workman also has two other older daughters, but it's unknown if they are from a previous relationship. Workman had shared several photos of himself with them over the years but before marrying Freudiger-Workman. While their ages are also unclear, they were very young when he first shared a photo of them on social media in 2015.
Workman did make it clear though, just how much he loves being a dad. In a post with his two older girls for Father's Day in 2017, he wrote, "One of the best ways to spend my Fathers Day, I couldn't have asked for anything more ... I love my girls so much."
Jimmy Workman still attends movie conventions
While the '90s "Addams Family" movies came out thirty years ago, Jimmy Workman is seemingly still proud that he got to play Pugsley. He's attended several film conventions in recent years that celebrate "The Addams Family" and "Addams Family Values."
In 2019, for example, he attended his first convention at Horror Hound Weekend, and later tweeted, "I got to meet so many awesome people." That same year, Workman also went to the New Jersey Horror Con as well as the Spooky Empire Convention in Florida. Later in 2022, he appeared at Horror Con in Los Angeles.
Workman seems to have nothing but happy memories from the sets of "The Addams Family" movies too. He even once told People about how much fun he had with his co-star, Christina Ricci, during the shoot. "We used to chase each other around and drive golf carts all over the lot," he recalled. Workman is apparently also aware that both movies have become beloved by fans, especially around Halloween. "Throughout the years and all the stories I've heard from everybody, it's impacted their lives a lot," he told Visionary Minds TV.
With that said, there might be hope that one day, some of the cast from the '90s "Addams Family" movies would be willing to reprise their roles for some type of reboot or reunion. Because even though Workman no longer looks like he did in the films, for most fans, he'll always be their "Pugsley."