While many people look at actors, actresses and other celebrities and dream about how great it must be to be famous, some people who are actually famous, don’t really like fame.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas became a household name and a teen heartthrob as a star on the hit sitcom “Home Improvement.” He was on the show for 8 seasons, but he didn’t really like being famous. He didn’t really like being known as JTT, and he didn’t really like spending his free time with other actors.
Way back in 1996, Thomas told Premiere magazine, “The industry is neurotic and weird, and so when I go home and I play basketball with my friends, I’m not Jonathan Taylor Thomas. I’m just Jonathan. I don’t like hanging out with other actors and actresses.”
While some child stars go on to have successful careers in Hollywood, other child stars have trouble getting roles playing adults after being known as child or teen actors. This fall from fame can be difficult for a former child star to handle, but it’s not at all what happened to Thomas.
JTT chose to leave the spotlight. He focused on his education and decided to leave “Home Improvement” to go to college. Even in 1996, Thomas knew he may not find success as an actor his whole life. He explained, “You can’t base your life around one thing. So that’s why I focus on school, I play sports, I learn the technical side of [filmmaking]. Because sometime it’ll change, and I’ll have my education to fall back on.”
Thomas loved his college experience. He explained, “To sit in a big library amongst books and students, that was pretty cool. It was a novel experience for me.”
The last time we saw Thomas was when he guest starred on Tim Allen’s show “Last Man Standing.” Now, he has been spotted once again, but not on TV. Instead, he was photographed walking his dogs. Check out the picture below.
Watch the video below to hear more of an update about JTT’s career, why he stepped away from Hollywood, and what he’s doing now.
Does it surprise you that a talented actor would choose college over fame? Do you think Thomas made the right choice? Were you a fan of “Home Improvement”?
