Matilda's Bruce Bogtrotter is unrecognisable from his chocolate-eating character

Remember Bruce Bugtrotter, the chocolate cake thief from Matilda? Caught out by the wicked principal, the "vicious sneak" was forced to eat a 40kg cake in front of the entire school. US actor Jimmy Karz performed masterfully in the role, stuffing cake fist over fist, all the while accumulating more and more cake around his mouth and face, but what's he been up to since?

Jimmy Karz as Bruce Bogtrotter in Matilda
Jimmy looks nothing like he did when he played iconic character Bruce Bogtrotter in classic children's movie Matilda. Photo: TriStar Pictures

After appearing in Matilda, Jimmy went on to play a minor role in the Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore comedy The Wedding Singer (remember the kid who Julia picks to slow dance with?). He also played a patient in medical drama ER, which was the last time he appeared on screen. However, he wasn't quite done with the entertainment industry, going on to study communications at university and work as a production associate with MTV News.

During this time Jimmy did some volunteering as a community gardener, helping people from socially disadvantaged backgrounds to grow their own food, and it was this extra-curricular activity that led Jimmy to a career in medicine.

"Through gardening, I learned a little bit about biology and chemistry, enough to realise I wanted to delve more into science," Jimmy said in an interview with medical publication The Do. "I went back to school to study biochemistry, which led me to medicine. I liked osteopathic medicine's focus on helping the whole patient, and I was interested in learning manual techniques to help patients."

Matilda actor Jimmy Karz and family
Jimmy (centre) went on to become a doctor, studying medicine at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Photo: The Do

When asked about his time as a child actor, Jimmy said it was a lot of work, particularly filming his memorable chocolate cake scene in Matilda.

"It was a lot of work - especially filming Matilda. That scene took about three weeks to film... I had to be on set all day, and I had to wear the same outfit every day. The chocolate was already encrusted on this shirt I was wearing.

"For continuity's sake, every day I had to have the chocolate painted on my face the way it was painted on the day before. I despised the smell of chocolate for a few weeks after that. I realised then that acting is not easy. There's a lot of skill and professionalism involved."

Never miss a thing. Sign up to Yahoo Lifestyle’s daily newsletter.

Or if you have a story idea, email us at lifestyle.tips@yahooinc.com.