If you ask me, Family Matters had the best theme song and was easily one of the best family shows of the ’90s.
The show catapulted many into Hollywood stardom, but for some, the journey was much more challenging.
Jaimee Foxworth played the youngest Winslow on Family Matters until her character suddenly disappeared.
The music and television industries can be ruthless, and Jaimee Foxworth knows this all too well. She was living the Hollywood dream, making audiences laugh alongside Steve Urkel, one of the era’s most iconic characters, while earning a lucrative paycheck.
But when she suddenly was cut from the show, she soon fell into a dark hole.
Foxworth was born 1979 and began modeling at age five. She appeared in national commercials for major brands, including McDonald’s and Mattel’s Barbie dolls. She made her acting debut in 1986 with a guest appearance on Amen.
”I’d never lived a normal childhood,” she once told Oprah. ”I always went to auditions.”
Eventually, the talented girl landed the role of Judy Winslow on Family Matters. As one of the longest-running American sitcoms featuring a predominantly Black cast, the Friday night favorite was a key part of ABC’s TGIF lineup for an impressive nine seasons.
Foxworth portrayed the youngest of the Winslow family’s three children, but after the introduction of Steve Urkel (Jaleel White), Judy’s screen time was significantly reduced. Combined with budget cuts and a lack of storylines for her character, producers decided to remove Judy after the fourth season. The character disappeared without explanation, with the Winslow family only acknowledging two children, Eddie (Darius McCrary) and Laura (Kellie Shanygne Williams).
”When I was on Family Matters, I thought the money was never going to stop,” Jaimee said. ”I thought I was never going to be broke. So I say to young girls, always have another option. Try to go for your dreams. Don’t try to be just what you see on TV.”
Jo Marie Payton, who played matriarch Harriette Winslow, was particularly upset by Foxworth’s dismissal, saying producers believed “nobody would notice” Judy’s absence.
Payton later expressed her frustration: “They took my baby. When I asked what happened to her, as she wasn’t at rehearsal, I was told that it didn’t matter.”
Foxworth herself explained, “The producers felt that they could do it and no one would notice.”
After leaving the show at age 13, Foxworth faced numerous challenges. She lost all the money she earned from the show and developed a marijuana addiction.
With acting opportunities scarce after her departure from Family Matters, Foxworth formed an R&B group, S.H.E., with her sisters Tyren and Jania Perry. They released their debut album, 3’s a Charm, on July 1, 1997, through Shaquille O’Neal’s T.W.IsM./Interscope Records.
From 2000 to 2002, she worked in the adult film industry under the stage name Crave. During this period, Jaimee recalls that her “self-esteem was just completely to the floor.”
”It was, to me, the quickest money,” she told Oprah. ”I was so naive, and I was drinking.”
Rumors suggested her downfall was connected to a judge’s ruling on her trust fund, which allegedly helped her family avoid bankruptcy.
However, she denied these claims in a 2009 interview: “I think [that came] from the National Enquirer. We never filed for bankruptcy. We were almost to the point where we were just completely flat broke but we never filed for bankruptcy.”
Despite these difficulties, Foxwroth rebuilt her life and welcomed a son, Michael, in 2009.
“I’ve been through a lot of pain in the past and … I now look forward to years of joy to share with my child,” she told People.
Foxworth, who appeared on Celebrity Rehab, announced during her pregnancy that she had achieved sobriety.
“Being sober has opened my eyes to a whole new world. I’ve been through a lot of pain in the past and I never really wanted a child until recently. I now look forward to years of joy to share with my child,” she said in 2008.
In an interview with The Root, the former child star shared that she still keeps in touch with several of her old castmates, including Jo Marie Payton (Harriette), Darius McCrary (Eddie), Kellie Shanygne Williams (Laura), and Shawn Harrison (Waldo). But in 2017, when Entertainment Weekly released a Family Matters reunion cover, Foxworth was not invited.
“I was not invited at all. I wasn’t even contacted,” she said. “It was a slap in the face from Entertainment Weekly.”
Today, she focuses on raising her son.
“I’m not that little girl anymore. Judy and Family Matters don’t define me. What defines me is how my son turns out. I don’t want people to look at my past, and even this situation, and judge me. I am extremely happy in the place that I’m in right now. I’m just trying to live my best life.”
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