Highlights
- Jonathan Taylor Thomas was a teenage heartthrob during his time on Home Improvement.
- Thomas’ Home Improvement co-stars teased him about his idol status.
- Thomas handled the fame well, focusing on his education and thinking about his future after leaving the show.
After many years of seemingly being forgotten, Home Improvement was added to Disney+. Since Home Improvement is now a Disney+ show with an A-list star, many people have been rewatching the show for the first time in years.
When people rediscover Home Improvement, they typically are reminded of how funny Jonathan Taylor Thomas could be. They also likely remember that while JTT never earned $1 million per episode like some TV stars, many fans were obsessed with him. With that in mind, it begs an obvious question, did JTT’s co-stars treat him differently once he became a teen heartthrob?
Jonathan Taylor Thomas Became A Teenage Heartthrob On Home Improvement
When Home Improvement’s first season started filming, there was no way for anyone to know how the show would be received. More than that, there certainly was no to know that one of the show’s child stars would become a sensation.
For anyone who doesn’t remember how crazy Jonathan Taylor Thomas mania was, it is hard to describe how many fans were smitten with him. What can be revealed, however, is Thomas received so much attention that even the mainstream media covered the situation.
In 1997, a writer for the Washington Post penned an article about Thomas. During that piece, the writer wrote about a slew of fans waiting hours to meet Thomas and get his signature. More notably, the writer described the scene once Thomas arrived and his adoring public caught a glimpse of the actor.
“Finally, a limo approaches. Squeals erupt from the theater lobby, where a poster advertises a chance to “Win a Date” with JTT or one of his Wild America co-stars. Cameras snap. ‘Jonathan, Jonathan . . . this way, Jonathan,’ the exiled press corps demands.”
Even years after Jonathan Taylor Thomas mania faded away, there were still plenty of people who didn’t forget. In 2015, one of the people who recalled how out of control the attention paid to Thomas was put together an MTV.com article.
In Amanda Bell’s 2015 MTV.com article, she put together “The Definitive Ranking Of JTT’s Teen Mag Covers”. Unfortunately, the article’s images are now broken, so it doesn’t reveal much other than the fact that Thomas appeared on an incredible amount of magazine covers.
What Was Jonathan Taylor Thomas’ Relationship With The Home Improvement Cast?
In the entertainment industry, there are certain attributes that people often need to survive. As a result, it arguably is a good thing when an entertainer has personality traits like competitiveness, and they have very high expectations for themself.
However, when multiple people who work together all the time have those personality traits, that can easily become a problem. Worse yet, when one of those people suddenly starts to get infinitely more attention than the rest, things can really go awry.
When Jonathan Taylor Thomas became a teen heartthrob, the amount of attention he received exploded. Once Thomas was thrust into the spotlight pretty much overnight, all of his Home Improvement co-stars had to take notice. With that in mind, it begs an obvious question. Did Thomas’ Home Improvement co-stars treat him differently once he became a heartthrob?
Fortunately for curious fans, it is possible to have some idea of how Thomas was treated once he became a teen heartthrob. The reason that is the case is Thomas once was asked how his co-stars reacted to his superstar status.
In 2011, there was a Home Improvement reunion photo shoot that brought together the show’s former main stars aside from Earl Hindman. After that, Thomas was interviewed by Entertainment Weekly about that experience.
Unsurprisingly, Entertainment Weekly’s interviewer briefly brought up Thomas’ former status as a teen heartthrob. “You single-handedly gave the teen fan magazines a reason to stay in business back in the 90s. Were you on the cover every week?”
In response to that question, Thomas gave a seemingly humble response when he simply said, “I guess so, yeah.” Entertainment Weekly’s interviewer followed up by asking Thomas about how his former co-stars reacted when he became a Tiger Beat mainstay. “Did the cast tease you about your idol status?”
In response to that question, Thomas unsurprisingly stated that his former co-stars made fun of his legion of devoted teen fans. That said, Thomas made sure to state that the mockery he received from his co-stars was in good fun. On top of that, Thomas clarified that he wasn’t made fun of too much.
“Oh yeah, every once in a while, it was always in good humor. It was too tempting not to be brought up on occasion. There are too many things you could make fun of.”
On top of Thomas’ remarks, there is more proof that the actor’s co-stars treated him differently. In 2021, the former Home Improvement star Zachary Ty Bryan very publicly made a joke about how many people were smitten with Thomas when they were kids.
On Instagram, Bryan shared a childhood photo of himself alongside Thomas. Alongside the image, Bryan included the caption, “The 2nd best looking guy in a photo of 2″. The caption seemed to be an obvious reference to how smitten everyone was with Thomas when the photo was taken.
Based on what is known about Thomas’ heartthrob years, it seems like he was teased and supported by his co-stars. The reason for that might be that according to what Patricia Richardson wrote during a Reddit Ask Me Anything session, Thomas handled the attention well.
“I think that it was very fortunate that Jonathan is so smart and well-balanced. Jonathan knew that pitfalls of the situation that he was in. When he left the show he ended up going back to school and got a really good education and thought a lot about what he wanted to do with his life.”
Richardson later continued, “I can’t speak for Jonathan if he was uncomfortable with fame like I was but we both coincidentally withdrew from the industry right after the show. I was trying to find a way to be just an actor instead of big celebrity as well as I wasn’t a fan of doing press, red carpets, etc.”
Source: NewsFinale
