Jonathan Taylor Thomas went beyond being celebrated as an actor and voice artist to attain the heights of a director. He is very popular for the voiceover performance of Simba in The Lion King, a 1994 Disney film.
Disregarding that, Mr. Thomas is also popular for his role on Home Improvement as Randy Taylor. The Actor is of both Portuguese and Pennsylvania Dutch (German) ancestry. As a child actor, he got nominated for awards about sixteen times and won five of them including two times Kids’ Choice Awards in 1998 and 1999.
Early Life And Rise to Fame
His birth name is Jonathan Taylor Weiss, and he was born on 8th September 1981 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States. His father, Stephen Weiss, was an industrial Sales Manager and his mother, born as Gonsalves but renamed Claudine, a personal manager, and social worker. They got divorced in 1991.
His uncle Jeff Weiss is a prominent actor and playwright. At age four, his family (including Joel Thomas Weiss, his older brother) moved to California from Bethlehem where he had a brief but interesting spell at modeling and TV commercials.
Thomas is a highly educated individual. He attended Chaminade College Preparatory School located in West Hills, California where he graduated with honors. Jonathan went on to study Philosophy and History at Harvard University. He spent his third year at St Andrews University, Scotland. The Actor also attended the Columbia University School of General Studies and graduated in 2010.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas made his debut appearance on television in 1990’s The Bradys playing the role of Kevin Brady, Greg Brady’s son. In 1991, he appeared in two episodes of a comedy series titled In Living Color. From 1991- 1998, Taylor acted as Randy Taylor in an ABC sitcom, Home Improvement, which earned him fame. After this, he announced a break from screen to put in the most in academics.
In 2000, Thomas appeared in an episode of The Wild Thornberrys and in Smallville (also in 2004). He also appeared in an ABC sitcom titled 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter (2004) amongst others. Taylor went off screen again and reappeared as a guest star in season two of the ABC sitcom, Last Man Standing in 2013. He also made guest appearances in the season three and four of the show in October 2013 and January 2015 respectively.
As a voice artist, his works include the Disney animation, The Lion King (as Simba, the cub) and Thru the Moebius Strip (as Prince Ragis in 2005). His voice roles on television include The Adventures of Spot (as Spot 1987 – 1993) and The Simpsons (as Luke Stetson in 2003). Video games with his voice are The Adventures of Pinocchio (as Human Pinocchio in 1996) and Kingdom Hearts II (as Young Simba in 2006).
The Actor has also starred in several films including Wild America (1997), Common Ground (2000), Disney’s Man of the House, I’ll Be Home for Christmas and Tom and Huck. In 2016, he directed The Extra – a short film.
Is Jonathan Taylor Thomas Married, Who’s His Wife?
It is reported that in 2007, Thomas got engaged to Natalie Wright. While almost nothing is known about the woman the actor made a move to marry her, it is known that the duo ended things the same year. Being a secretive person and not one who seeks fame, he has managed to keep details of his romantic affairs away from the public.
Is He Gay?
In 2011, Chelsea Handler, the host of the show Chelsea Lately called out Jonathan Taylor Thomas as gay. This got everyone talking and almost confirmed years of already buzzing suspicions trailing his perfect performance as a gay and bisexual hustler in Common Ground and Speedway Junky respectively.
Well, Thomas defended himself by saying that his sexual orientation and those of his characters in films are unrelated. Still, we know you wonder as much as we do if he is really straight.
Where Is He Today?
A Facebook post recently confirmed the death of the Actor garnering over a million likes until his rep denied it. He is said to be alive, hale and healthy but obviously off our screen. Where is Jonathan Taylor Thomas? This is probably the most asked question on the lips of many. Well, no one can really tell what’s up with him at the moment.
Height And Weight
Height: 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm)
Weight: 64 kg (141 lb)
Eye color: Blue
Hair color: Light brown