Jonathan Taylor Thomas went from ’90s child star to Tim Allen lookalike and no one noticed

Jonathan Taylor Thomas will always be Tom Sawyer to me, but the ’90s star is a teen no more. He’s a full blown adult, these days, and it seems he’s traded out Tom Sawyer for Tim Taylor.

Thomas is in his early 40s now, and he’s been absent from the screen — apart from the rare cameo — for decades. He retired from acting in 2005, and, unlike most stars, successfully stepped back from the limelight to enjoy a life away from the cameras.

That’s made him incredibly elusive since the mid-2000s, which makes isolated instances in which he’s spotted all the more thrilling. He’s been seen around four times — IN TOTAL — since he appeared in a 2005 episode of Veronica Mars, and in one of the latest appearances he gave a (fully unintentional but no less impressive) jaw dropping impersonation of his longtime on-screen dad, Tim Allen.

Thomas was just being a guy in his 40s, walking around his home city, but we can’t help but be struck by his resemblance to the man who played his father across eight seasons of Home Improvement. He’s the spitting image of his on-screen pops in the unexpected 2021 shot, proving — a bit tardy— just how good the casting process for Home Improvement really was.

Thomas played the middle Taylor child — Randy — across 179 episodes of Home Improvement, growing from child into teen before viewers’ eyes. He departed the series in 1998 to focus on his academics, and just a few years later retired from acting completely.

Before he did so, however, Thomas made the full transition from adolescent charmer to teen sensation, trading out his boyish good looks for the dashingly handsome young man who came after.

Thomas has kept up the same trend into full adulthood, despite his departure from the screen. He chose privacy and a life away from the spotlight over the paparazzi’s constant pestering, and left his fans to wish him well from afar. He made a few reappearances over the years, slyly showcasing how those dashing teen years likewise transformed into the cozy-yet-striking good looks of a grown man.

Now he’s in his early 40s and still thriving far from the cameras. He manages to keep a low profile — something the man absolutely deserves — but fans none-the-less rejoice each time a rare paparazzi manages to snag a shot. He’s still aging gracefully — despite enjoying the same inevitable marks of age we all welcome eventually — and seems to be thriving, albeit from afar.

Thomas was, during his time as an actor, a staple of several mega-popular releases. He’ll forever be remembered as the voice of young Simba in The Lion King and Prince Ragis in Thru the Moebius Strip, as well as for his roles as Tom Sawyer, Randy Taylor, and Jake Wilkinson. He made his mark, during his short period on screen, and even as he ducks the paparazzi and deservedly keeps to himself, he’ll always be remembered well for his contributions to cinema.