Jonathan Taylor Thomas was at the pinnacle of his fame when he left Hollywood, leaving young girls yearning for the teen heartthrob, also known as JTT.
The Home Improvement star, who turned 43 on September 8, was last seen in 2023, and admirers who used to fawn on him were surprised by his appearance.
Continue reading to find out what happened to the actor who notably voiced Simba in the 1994 Disney classic The Lion King!
After playing Greg Brady’s son on the short-lived 1990 TV series The Bradys, a spinoff of The Brady Bunch, Jonathan Taylor Thomas landed a job on Home Improvement, starring comedian Tim Allen.
When the show aired in 1991, Thomas, who played the middle child, was just ten years old. He spent the next eight years growing up in front of an international audience, achieving stratospheric renown as a teen heartthrob to millions of adoring young ladies.
“You are a part of their life, and there is a lot that is owed them,” he told the New York Times of his rabid popularity. “But it’s difficult because you want to make everyone happy, but if you try to do that, you’re setting yourself up for failure.”
Thomas, 12, of Pennsylvania, voiced Simba in the highly acclaimed Disney animated picture The Lion King in 1994, which made fans laugh, cry, and sing.
“Simba’s like me,” says Thomas, who used his regular voice to play the little lion in the smash hit. “I just put my natural energy into it. Real curious, fun-loving, always getting into mischief.”
Thomas, who alternated between The Lion King and Randy Taylor on Home Improvement, recalls being shuttled back and forth between sets for two years.
“I had to kind of go, ‘Oops! Time to be Randy’…’Oops! Time to be Simba,’” Thomas told People in 1994. “You have to prepare yourself to become this totally different person. I mean, we’re not lions, right?”
‘Full blown migraines’
Thomas began his withdrawal from the spotlight in 1998, after leaving Home Improvement before the series’ final season.
“I can’t tell you how many shows I’ve done with full-blown migraine headaches,” he says of his exhaustion. “I’d been going nonstop since I was 8 years old…I wanted to go to school, to travel and have a bit of a break.”
Over the next few years, he made guest appearances on shows such as Ally McBeal, Smallville, and 8 Simple Rules, as well as lending his voice to animated characters on The Wild Thornberrys and The Simpsons.
‘Blatant lie’
Before leaving, he took on more challenging roles, such as a ʙɪsᴇxᴜᴀʟ hustler in the indie film Speedway Junky (1999) and a persecuted ɢᴀʏ kid in Showtime’s Common Ground (2000).
These choices, combined with his desire to retain his solitude, fuelled rumors about his sexuality, which he politely refuted during an interview with Jay Leno.
“Pretty much in Hollywood you’re not anyone until it’s rumored that you’re ɢᴀʏ, so I wasn’t that upset about it,” Thomas, then 17, told the host. “Not that there’s anything wrong with it, but they’re rumors and you should always be kind of careful with that internet stuff.”
Is John Baker caught up on Kristin? Jonathan Taylor Thomas guest stars on Friday’s new episode of #LastManStanding! pic.twitter.com/6fjmNqcbRj
— Last Man Standing (@LastManStanding) January 29, 2014
When Leno inquired if he was ɢᴀʏ, Thomas said, “No, no, no, no, I’m not. I’m not.”
Later, in an interview with The Advocate, he denied the rumors, which he claims originated on a website called CyberSleaze.
“It was just a blatant lie put on the internet and then it was like a feeding frenzy. And I’m sure it was validated by my recent roles,” Thomas said. “What startled me was how willingly people accepted it.”
‘No regrets’
Next, he broke hearts when he left Hollywood to pursue his dream of “going to school.”
In 2000, he graduated from Chaminade College Preparatory School in New York and attended Harvard University, where he studied philosophy and history. He later graduated from Columbia University’s School of General Studies in 2010.
Happy 35th birthday Jonathan Taylor Thomas! ❤️ See his evolution through 24 photos: https://t.co/gNWKWKBsw3 pic.twitter.com/glLSHW0sKg
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) September 8, 2016
“To sit in a big library amongst books and students, that was pretty cool. It was a novel experience for me,” he says.
He acknowledges that he “never took the fame too seriously” and expresses gratitude for a “great period in my life.”But it does not define me.”
He went on to say, “When I think back on the time, I look at it with a wink. I focus on the good moments I had, not that I was on a lot of magazine covers.”
Taking advantage of his free time, Thomas claims he has “no regrets” for quitting Hollywood.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas – 32
Randy – Home Improvement
Now in LA; directing & writing. Also a very keen hiker.
— Where Are They Now? (@WATNCelebrity) May 25, 2014
But he didn’t vanish completely. From 2013 to 2015, the former adolescent heartthrob reunited with Allen, his TV father from Home Improvement, for four episodes of Last Man Standing. He also directed three episodes of the show.
Rare sighting
In 2023, two years after being sighted walking his dogs, the star was spotted in public, and the photos sparked a lot of interest among followers.
The star dressed simply, sporting a beige sweater, trousers, and a black tuque.
Fans rushed to the comments section to share their thoughts on his unusual sighting.
“JTT, my elementary school crush,” gushes one fan while a second adds, “Like many others my age, he was my childhood crush. I’m glad he avoided the Hollywood weirdness.”
A third offers, “He was a child star and a teen heartthrob, who knows what happened to him. Hollywood rarely treats children well.”
Another, reflecting on Thomas’ memorable hairstyle from Home Improvement, adds, “Of course he looks different now! Not many 42 yr old men walking around with bowl haircuts. He brought much joy to many with his early career.”
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