From 1969 to 1974, Christopher Knight starred as the eternal middle child Peter on The Brady Bunch, one of the most beloved family sitcoms of all time.
Along with his fellow “Bradys,” Knight became a pop culture icon, his famous line “Pork chops and applesauce!” entering the lexicon.
But as the series concluded and time moved on, a question lingered: What became of Christopher Knight?
Background Info
Knight was born in New York City on November 7, 1957, to an immigrant family, Christopher Knight followed his father into acting early in his life. He would make his debut in 1967, starring in one episode of the then-controversial show Mannix followed by an episode of Gunsmoke the following year.
The Brady Bunch
Christopher Knight would hit the break of all breaks in 1969 when he was cast as Peter Brady in The Brady Bunch at just twelve years old. The show, created by Sherwood Schwartz of Gilligan’s Island fame, featured two single parents meeting and subsequently marrying, with all the growing pains that come from having three kids each.
Consider for a moment how happy and shiny The Brady Bunch sounds as a title before knowing it was almost called The Brady Brood. Definitely a different vibe there, good thing they changed it.
The show would be a massive success and run for five seasons, multiple spinoffs, and revival specials for years to come. Christopher Knight would make friends for life with his co-stars, even going on to star with them in future films and television roles after wrapping up the boundary-pushing series.
End of the Bunch(?)
While the impact of the series would be massive in retrospect, it would face some rough ratings and eventually cancellation due to falling numbers and on-set tensions. Notably, actor Robert Reed who played Mike Brady would have arguments with Schwartz over his character, causing him to be excluded from the final episode of the show.
Despite the tensions, everyone stayed together for the kids until filming was done and the network chose not to renew. The family would end up hosting several television variety hours after the show ended though, appearing in skits, songs, and a big-screen reunion movie in the 80s.
His popularity would get him guest roles on various other shows through the end of the 70s, even having the honor of meeting Fonzie on an episode of Happy Days before getting another regular role in the daytime soap Another World for twenty episodes.
What did he do after The Brady Bunch?
While he would continue making the rounds in guest roles on various sitcoms and television dramas as original characters and Peter Brady, Christopher Knight would find time to finish school and get into computer programming, eventually working his way through the early computer boom of the 90s and making a whole other fortune beside his Brady Bunch money.
Not everything would be a winner though, and Knight would also marry his first wife Julie Schulman in 1989. The marriage would last a brief three years before the two divorced, with Christopher Knight meeting and marrying his second wife Toni Erickson in 1995. Their marriage would end with the new millennium five years later.
He would see a small resurgence in the 90s and 2000s, picking up cameos as himself and in The Brady Bunch Movie, an attempted reboot of the series. Though it wouldn’t necessarily launch anything, it would bring the original series and its cast back to the forefront for multiple nostalgia roles.
Don’t Look For Love on Reality TV
Christopher Knight would go on to do the thing most child actors from his time were destined to do- go on a reality show. Starring in VH1’s The Surreal Life would lead Knight to meet his second wife, model Adrianne Curry. The two were eventually covered on another VH1 show, My Fair Brady, which covered the lead-up to their wedding.
The third time wasn’t the charm though, and the couple would call it quits in early 2012. While Brady would maintain a low profile for most of the 10s, starring primarily in straight-to-television films that were C-Grade at best before hitting the crowning achievement of a Sharknado cameo.
What is Christopher Knight doing now?
The Brady Bunch would have a semi-reunion around 2021, with the actor reuniting with former co-stars for the Lifetime film A Blended Christmas. He would also start a podcasting career with Brady brother Barry Williams, hosting a recap show where they give behind-the-scenes stories episode by episode of The Brady Bunch.
Christopher Knight seems mostly content to enjoy his time coasting off his Brady fame and investments in furniture companies as well as continuing computer residuals. He met his fourth wife, Cara Knight, and the two were married in 2016. They live a relatively quiet life while Knight mostly enjoys reminiscing on the podcast.
While he doesn’t have any plans for upcoming projects in the future, he is continuing on a weekly release schedule on his podcast and frequently bringing on guest stars from episodes throughout the series as well as some of the surviving stars of the original show.
(with Eve Plumb)
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