Jonathan Taylor Thomas
| Jonathan Taylor Thomas | |
|---|---|
 Thomas in 1998 | |
| Born |
Jonathan Taylor Weiss September 8, 1981 Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor, voice actor, director |
| Years active | 1987–present |
Jonathan Taylor Thomas (born Jonathan Taylor Weiss on September 8, 1981) is an American actor, voice actor, former child star, and teen idol. He is known for his roles as the middle child Randy Taylor on Home Improvement, and as the voice of the young Simba in Disney's 1994 film The Lion King.
Career
Television
Thomas began his television career in 1990, playing the role of Kevin, the son of Greg Brady, on The Bradys, a spin-off of the 1970s TV show The Brady Bunch. In 1991, Thomas appeared in three episodes of Fox's sketch comedy series In Living Color. That same year, he was cast as Randy Taylor on ABC's sitcom Home Improvement. Thomas remained with Home Improvement well into his teenage years, but left the show in 1998 to focus on academics.
In early 2004, Thomas had a guest role on 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, another ABC sitcom, and appeared in the WB's Smallville in 2002 and 2004. In 2005, he appeared in UPN's high school detective drama Veronica Mars, and was also featured on The E! True Hollywood Story's show on Home Improvement.
On March 22, 2013, Thomas guest starred on the second season finale of his third ABC sitcom Last Man Standing, and again in the fourth episode of the third season on October 11, 2013, reuniting with Tim Allen, his TV father from Home Improvement.[1] On January 10, 2015, Thomas again guest starred on twelfth episode of the fourth season of Last Man Standing, this time as Randy, reuniting with his TV parents from Home Improvement, Tim Allen and Patricia Richardson.[2]
Film
Thomas appeared in many films during and after his run on Home Improvement. He had a few roles as a voice actor, but his major one was in Disney's 32nd animated feature The Lion King, in which he voiced the protagonist Simba as a cub.
He also appeared in live-action films. Among the ones he starred in are those from Disney: Man of the House, Tom and Huck, and I'll Be Home for Christmas. Other live-action films starring Thomas are: an adaptation of The Adventures of Pinocchio (in which he played the titular character), Wild America, Speedway Junky, and Walking Across Egypt.
Personal life
Thomas was born Jonathan Taylor Weiss in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the son of Claudine (née Gonsalves), a personal manager and social worker, and Stephen Weiss, an industrial sales manager; the two divorced in 1991.[3] His uncle is playwright/actor Jeff Weiss.[4] Thomas is of Portuguese and Pennsylvania Dutch (German) ancestry.[5][6]
In 2000, he graduated with honors from Chaminade College Preparatory School in West Hills, California.[7][8] Upon graduation, he enrolled at Harvard University, where he studied philosophy and history and spent his third year abroad at St. Andrews University in Scotland.[9][10][11] In 2010, he graduated from the Columbia University School of General Studies.[12]
He has been a vegetarian for much of his life.[13][14]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Lion King, TheThe Lion King | Young Simba (voice) | |
| 1994 | Pom Poko | Shoukichi (voice) | 2005 Disney dub |
| 1995 | Man of the House | Ben Archer (Little Wing) | |
| 1995 | Tom and Huck | Tom Sawyer | |
| 1996 | Adventures of Pinocchio, TheThe Adventures of Pinocchio | Pinocchio (voice) | |
| 1997 | Wild America | Marshall Stouffer | |
| 1998 | I Woke Up Early the Day I Died | Boy at Beach | |
| 1998 | I'll Be Home for Christmas | Jake Wilkinson | |
| 1999 | Speedway Junky | Steve | |
| 1999 | Walking Across Egypt | Wesley Benfield | |
| 2000 | Common Ground | Tobias Anderson | |
| 2005 | Tilt-A-Whirl | Customer #3 | Short film |
| 2005 | Thru the Moebius Strip | Prince Ragis (voice) | |
| 2006 | Extra, TheThe Extra | Director | Short film |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Adventures of Spot, TheThe Adventures of Spot | Spot (voice) | TV series short |
| 1990 | Bradys, TheThe Bradys | Kevin Brady | Episode: "Start Your Engines/Here We Grow Again" Episode: "Hat in the Ring" |
| 1991 | In Living Color | Macaulay Culkin | Episode: "Home Alone Again" Episode: "The Jackson Bunch" |
| 1991–1998 | Home Improvement | Randy Taylor | 179 episodes |
| 1993 | In Living Color | Episode: "Forever Silky" | |
| 1994 | Itsy Bitsy Spider, TheThe Itsy Bitsy Spider | George (voice) | Episode: "Spider Sense" |
| 1996 | Oz Kids, TheThe Oz Kids | Scarecrow Jr (voice) | TV series |
| 2000 | Common Ground | Tobias Anderson | TV movie |
| 2000 | Ally McBeal | Chris Emerson | Episode: "Do You Wanna Dance?" |
| 2000 | Wild Thornberrys, TheThe Wild Thornberrys | Tyler Tucker (voice) | 5 episodes |
| 2000 | Tangerine Bear: Home in Time for Christmas!, TheThe Tangerine Bear: Home in Time for Christmas! | Tangie (voice) | Video |
| 2000 | Timothy Tweedle the First Christmas Elf | Timothy Tweedle | TV movie |
| 2001 | An American Town | Rafe | TV movie |
| 2002 | Smallville | Ian Randall | Episode: "Dichotic" |
| 2003 | Simpsons, TheThe Simpsons | Luke Stetson (voice) | Episode: "Dude, Where's My Ranch?" |
| 2004 | Smallville | Ian Randall | Episode: "Asylum" |
| 2004 | 8 Simple Rules | Jeremy | 3 episodes |
| 2005 | Veronica Mars | Ben | Episode: "Weapons of Class Destruction" |
| 2013–2015 | Last Man Standing | John Baker/Randy | Episode: "College Girl" Episode: "Ryan vs. John Baker" Episode: "Tasers" Episode: "Helen Potts" |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Adventures of Pinocchio, TheThe Adventures of Pinocchio | Human Pinocchio (voice) | |
| 2006 | Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts II | Young Simba (voice) | Archive audio |
Awards and nominations
Wins
- 1994 – Young Artist Awards for Outstanding Youth Ensemble in a Television Series (Home Improvement)
- 1996 – ShoWest Convention: ShoWest Award for Young Star of the Year
- 1997 – Young Artist Awards for Best Performance in a Voiceover – Young Artist (The Adventures of Pinocchio)
- 1998 – Kids' Choice Awards: Blimp Award for Favourite Television Actor (Home Improvement)
- 1999 – Kids' Choice Awards: Hall of Fame Award
Nominations
- 1993 – Young Artist Awards for Best Young Actor Starring in a Television Series (Home Improvement)
- 1995 – Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor (The Lion King)
- 1995 – Young Artist Awards for Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Voiceover – TV or Movie (The Lion King)
- 1996 – Young Artist Awards for Best Young Leading Actor – Feature Film (Tom and Huck)
- 1996 – Kids' Choice Awards: Blimp Award for Favorite Movie Actor (Tom and Huck)
- 1997 – Kids' Choice Awards: Blimp Award for Favorite Television Actor (Home Improvement)
- 1997 – Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor (The Adventures of Pinocchio)
- 1997 – YoungStar Awards for Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Comedy TV Series (Home Improvement)
- 1997 – YoungStar Awards for Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Comedy Film (Tom and Huck)
- 1998 – YoungStar Awards for Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Comedy TV Series (Home Improvement)
- 1999 – Kids' Choice Awards: Blimp Award for Favorite TV Actor (Home Improvement)
References
- ↑ "Jonathan Taylor Thomas Returns To 'Last Man Standing' (VIDEO)". Huffingtonpost.com. 2013-10-10. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
- ↑ "Jonathan Taylor Thomas Returns to Last Man Standing". People.com. 2015-01-09. Retrieved 2015-01-10.
- ↑ "Jonathan Taylor Thomas Biography (1981-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ "Walnutport Girl, 6, Already A New York Commuter ... Backstage - Morning Call". Articles.mcall.com. 1993-02-26. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ "Questions and answers w/ Jonathan Taylor Thomas". Web.archive.org. 2007-09-29. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ Pacheco, Patrick (1986-04-06). "Off-Off-Broadway's king goes Public". Newsday. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ↑ "Jonathan Taylor Thomas' Birthday: Star Turns 30 Years Old (PHOTOS)". Huffingtonpost.com. 2011-09-08. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ Nahas, Aili (2011-09-08). "Jonathan Taylor Thomas Pictures with Home Improvement Cast". People.com. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ "Jonathan Taylor Thomas : News". People.com. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ Alana Daley (2005-09-22). "Whatever happened to: child star Jonathan Taylor Thomas?". The Gazette. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ "Jonathan Taylor Thomas".
- ↑ "Notable Alumni". gs.columbia.edu. Retrieved 2014-07-14.
- ↑ "The Spokesman-Review - Google News Archive Search". google.com.
- ↑ "Vegetarian Starter Kit". PETAKids.com. Retrieved 2011-12-05.