In an upcoming episode of “Last Man Standing,” which is in its final season, Tim Allen got the chance to reprise his iconic role of Tim “The Toolman” Taylor from his 1990s sitcom “Home Improvement.”
January 3rd, the final season of Last Man Standing returns to Fox. The network put out a promo to tease the Toolman cameo as the sitcom saving its “biggest surprise” for last. You can watch the fun-filled promo in the video below.
Tim Allen Admits He Got Emotional Revisiting His Tim The Toolman Role
In a new interview this week, Allen has admitted that he became emotional when it came time to revisit this role so many years later on an entirely different show.
“It was very peculiar to do both parts, I’ll tell you that. It was challenging for me to do both parts and kind of emotional,” Allen admitted to Entertainment Tonight.
He went on to explain that the emotions came largely because of the 2003 death of Earl Hindman, who played Allen’s onscreen neighbor Wilson in “Home Improvement.”
“I adored the man and we kind of brought that up in the story,” Allen explained. “I started thinking about all the history I had with that TV show, how I compare it to my life on this show. It’s all about loss, is all I kept saying in that episode.”
Related: Patricia Richardson Fears Her ‘Home Improvement’ Costar Tim Allen Has ‘Never Really Forgiven’ Her For This
Tim Allen Had Other Difficulties Playing Two Roles
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Aside from the emotional aspect, Allen said that playing both Tim Taylor and Mike Baxter was “very difficult” for other reasons as well.
“That was the first episode back,” he said, referring to the pause the show took due to COVID-19. “So getting used to no crowd, and then having people direct me in a character I developed 20 years ago and then was kind of done with, it [was hard].”
While Allen found this experience challenging, it was just another day for his “Last Man Standing” costar Nancy Travis.
“It was interesting and strange,” she said of seeing him play two parts. “Honestly, it was Tim’s dilemma. I just stood by and mocked him, so it was, frankly, very easy for me.”
Though Allen refused to give details about the plot surrounding Tim Taylor, he hinted that his two characters did not exactly see eye to eye.
“Taylor lost his TV show. Tool Time is over. He had a neighbor that passed away. He’s now working on the corporate side of Bedford Tools. That’s what he does,” Allen said.
“Baxter’s helping Tim Taylor cope with change… They’re not nice to each other. They’re kind of antagonistic.”
Related: Tim Allen Teaches Liberals A Brutal Lesson About Capitalism On ‘Last Man Standing’
Praise For The ‘Last Man Standing’ Episode To Beat All Episodes
Though it was emotional and difficult at times, Allen praised the episode as “a great idea” that brought Tim Taylor “into this century, into this year.”
“It’s really clever what they did with it,” he said of the writers on the show.
Allen also let fans know what they can expect from the ninth and final season of “Last Man Standing.”
“By the time this airs… it will have been literally as the vaccine takes hold. We’re kind of not through it, but the light is bright at the end of the tunnel,” he said of the role coronavirus will play in the season.
“We reference it. We remember the pandemic. It’s used, but it’s as though our masks had just come off.”
Tim Allen took to social media to remind everyone to mark their calendars for the return of “Last Man Standing” on January 3rd.
Mark your calendars people! @LastManStanding #NewYear2021 pic.twitter.com/omMrCcBHKX
— Tim Allen (@ofctimallen) December 17, 2020
While we’re sad that “Last Man Standing” is coming to an end, we can’t wait to see the full season of episodes that are lined up in 2021!
Every @LastManStanding Fan right now learning that Season 9 of #LastManStanding will be the final season. 😢
Thank You again @FOXTV for 3 more seasons of this amazing family show. Please let Last Man Standing finish with 200th Episode! #LastManStanding200thEpisode pic.twitter.com/oiMfJWqPHs— Last Man Still Standing (@BringbackLMS) October 16, 2020
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