When Jonathan Taylor Thomas left Hollywood, he was at the height of his popularity, and young girls were lusting after the teenage idol, also known as JTT.
When the fans last saw the Home Improvement star in 2023, they were appalled by his appearance. The actor turned 43 on September 8.
Find out what happened to the man who famously voiced Simba in the 1994 Disney blockbuster The Lion King by reading on! Jonathan Taylor Thomas got a role on Home Improvement, which starred Tim Allen, after he played Greg Brady’s kid on the brief 1990 TV show The Bradys, which was a spinoff of The Brady Bunch.
Thomas, who played the middle child, was just ten years old when the show debuted in 1991. He spent the following eight years maturing in front of a global audience, becoming a teenage idol to millions of devoted young women.
He told the New York Times of his immense popularity, “You are a part of their life, and there is a lot that is owed to them.” Trying to please everyone is a definite way to fail, which makes it difficult.
Born in Pennsylvania, Thomas portrayed Simba in the wildly popular Disney animated film The Lion King, which moved audiences to tears, laughter, and singing.
Thomas, who used his normal voice to play the little lion in the hit song, continues, “Simba’s like me.” “I just gave it my natural energy.” I’m prone to mischief, love to have fun, and have a lot of questions.
On Home Improvement, Thomas, who took turns playing Randy Taylor and The Lion King, recalls bouncing between sets for two years.
“I had to own up to my error.” Now is the moment to be Randy. “Sorry! In 1994, Thomas told People, “It’s time to become Simba.” “You have to get ready to change into this entirely new person.” “You do realize we’re not lions?”
On Home Improvement, Thomas, who took turns playing Randy Taylor and The Lion King, recalls bouncing between sets for two years.
“I had to own up to my error.” Now is the moment to be Randy. “Sorry! In 1994, Thomas told People, “It’s time to become Simba.” “You have to get ready to change into this entirely new person.” “You do realize we’re not lions?”
Over the ensuing years, he voiced animated characters on The Wild Thornberrys and The Simpsons and had cameos on shows including Smallville, Ally McBeal, and 8 Simple Rules.
He played more difficult roles before departing, including a persecuted homosexual child in Showtime’s Common Ground (2000) and a bisexual hustler in the independent film Speedway Junky (1999).
These decisions, as well as his need to maintain his privacy, stoked rumors about his sexual orientation, which he graciously denied in a Jay Leno interview.
“I wasn’t too upset about it, because in Hollywood, you’re pretty much nobody until it’s rumored that you’re gay,” Thomas, who was 17 at the time, told the show. Although it’s perfectly acceptable, it’s crucial to use caution when responding to online rumors.
Thomas responded to Leno’s question about his sexual orientation by saying, “No, no, no, no, I’m not.” “I’m not.”
He later rejected the stories, claiming they came from the website CyberSleaze, in an interview with The Advocate.
“I’m sure my recent roles have validated it,” Thomas said. “The willingness with which people accepted it surprised me.”
He then left Hollywood to follow his dream of “going to school,” shattering hearts in the process.
After graduating from New York’s Chaminade College Preparatory School in 2000, he went on to Harvard University to study history and philosophy. Later, in 2010, he received his degree from Columbia University’s School of General Studies.
It was awesome to sit in a big library full with books and students. “For me, it was a novel experience,” he says.
He praises them for a “great period in my life” and admits that he “never took the fame too seriously.” However, it doesn’t define who I am.
“When I think back on the past, I wink,” he continued. I choose to concentrate on the good things in my life instead of the fact that I’ve been featured on a number of magazine covers.
Thomas uses his leisure time to assert that he has “no regrets” about leaving Hollywood.
However, he did not entirely disappear. For four Last Man Standing episodes between 2013 and 2015, the erstwhile teenage idol reunited with Allen, his Home Improvement TV father. In addition, he directed three of the show’s episodes.
The celebrity was spotted in public in 2023, two years after being spotted walking his dogs, and his followers were very interested in the pictures.
The star wore a black tuque, pants, and a beige sweater as part of a casual outfit.
In response to his unexpected sighting, fans flocked to the comments area to express their thoughts.
One admirer declares, “JTT, my primary school crush,” while another adds, “Like many others my age, he was my childhood crush.” I’m glad he escaped the madness of Hollywood.
“Who knows what happened to a child celebrity and adolescent idol like him?” asks someone else. Children are rarely treated decently in Hollywood.
Another person said, “Of course he looks different today!” in reference to Thomas’ well-known Home Improvement haircut. There aren’t many men in their forties with bowl hairstyles. In his early career, he made a lot of people happy.
