If you were a kid in the '90s, there's no chance you missed the TV juggernaut that was
Family Matters.
So just how different does that pesky Steve Urkel look after the show ran from 1989 to
1998?
Odds are, you might not even recognize him.
Here's what these Family Matters actors who look like today.
Jaleel White
The actor who played the unbearable, scene-stealing Steve Urkel has come a long way since Family
Matters went off the air.
Since then, Jaleel White graduated from UCLA with a degree in film and television, and
in the late 2000s, his acting career slowly began to regain momentum when he landed guest
spots on shows like House, NCIS, and Boston Legal.
Oh, and Sonic Underground...as three different, horrible hedgehogs.
"Gosh!"
"What's wrong?"
"Beware, Purple Sand is the home of the deadly sand snake!"
"No biggie.
We'll just stay in the van."
In 2010, White also wrote produced, and starred in an online series called Fake It 'Til You
Make It, poking fun at his obnoxious early TV years.
White also appeared on Dancing with the Stars in 2012, finishing in seventh place.
During his run on the show, People reports that he got into a fight with his dancing
partner, Kym Johnson, after he allegedly stepped on her foot in rehearsals.
"Did I do that?"
Kellie Williams
Steve Urkel's unrequited love interest Laura Winslow, played by Kellie Williams, has acted
sporadically over the years, most famously on ABC's What About Joan.
She also landed guest spots on Girlfriends and Eve.
Her most recent acting credit was in 2011, so she's more or less avoiding the spotlight
to focus on family.
According to the actress' official website and her frequent tweets about her kids, Williams'
top priority is being a "devoted wife and mother."
She and husband Hannibal Jackson have two children: Hannah Belle and John Ervin Jackson.
Williams also dabbles in charitable events in and around the Washington, D.C. area, where
she resides.
Darius McCrary
Since playing Eddie Winslow, Darius McCrary has kept busy on the small screen.
In recent years, he's appeared on hit shows like the Charlie Sheen comedy Anger Management.
From 2009 to 2011, he also had a recurring role on the daytime soap The Young and the
Restless.
Most unforgettably, he also provided the voice for Jazz in the 2007 Transformers movie.
"This looks like a cool place to kick it."
McCrary's personal life, however, has been a bit messy.
According to TMZ, the actor is on his third marriage, this time to former Harlem Globetrotter
Tammy Brawner.
His second marriage, to video vixen Karrine Steffans, has been the source of major drama
over the last few years.
In 2010, he was accused of beating Steffans with a belt in front of the couple's son.
In 2015, McCrary was jailed for falling behind on child support payments.
And in 2016, he was really, really excited to be a guest judge at the 27th Annual Ms.
Full-Figured USA Pageant.
"And I'm gonna tell you something.
I have to be quite honest.
I love my woman like two cheeseburgers away from, you know, from being like super sexy.
Jo Marie Payton
"Well, what was Harriette doing in there that whole time?"
"No Harriette used to run the elevator, but now she's got her own show.
It's called Family Matters.
Watch this!"
(theme music playing)
If it weren't for Jo Marie Payton's role as elevator operator Harriette Winslow on Perfect
Strangers, Family Matters may never have happened.
Her character was so popular that she was the reason for the spinoff… but she was
also the first actor to leave Family Matters in the middle of the show's final season,
as she was feeling creatively stifled.
Immediately after leaving, Payton released a jazz album called Southern Shadows, and
quickly moved on to recurring roles in Moesha and Will & Grace.
Payton has mostly kept to the small screen, but you'll probably also recognize her as
the voice of Suga Mama on the long-running The Proud Family...
"Pup?
You stink!
Smell like you've been living in a garbage can!"
...and most recently, in a regular role on BounceTV's Mann and Wife.
Reginald VelJohnson
Though he's probably best known as police officer and patriarch Carl Winslow, Reginald
VelJohnson's career has done better than most of his co-stars.
He predated Family Matters with a notable role in the classic Die Hard series — as
a cop — and an appearance in Ghostbusters…
as a cop.
"Okay, Ghostbusters.
The mayor wants to see you guys.
The whole island's going crazy.
Let's go."
After the cancellation of Family Matters, VelJohnson showed up in guest spots just about
everywhere, including CSI, Crossing Jordan, Will & Grace, and That's So Raven.
Even more recently, he's appeared in It's Always Sunny and Girl Meets World.
According to a 2016 interview with The Huffington Post, VelJohnson still regularly talks with
his old TV family, and even co-starred with his former TV-wife, Jo Marie Payton, in the
TV movie, The Flight Before Christmas.
While filming, the pair even discussed the possibility of a Family Matters reunion.
"Those horrible catchphrases...over and over and over again…
'Did I do that?'
'Did I do that?'"
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