'Last Man Standing' Star Tim Allen Confronted About Possible Retirement from Show Biz
Nothing, not even wildly successful and long-spanning careers, lasts forever.
And yet, according to beloved actor Tim Allen, he will never stop working — because he doesn’t consider acting to be “work.”
In an exclusive interview with the New York Post, the 70-year-old Allen effectively confirmed that retirement hasn’t even begun to cross his mind.
And Allen quoted legendary NFL coach John Madden to illustrate his point:
“I think it was, Madden said it. A football guy said, ‘I’ve never worked a day in my life,’” Allen told the outlet.
“I’ve never worked a day in my life” is a clear play on the idea that if you truly love what you do for a living, it’s not “work.”
That philosophy is one that Allen has discussed with his dear friend and fellow comedy icon Jay Leno.
“And for those of us in the moment, my good friend Jay Leno and I both talk about standup,” Allen explained. “I still do concerts.”
The septuagenarian actor then added: “And [Leno] said, ‘I don’t know. I don’t know what retirement would be. I don’t I don’t know. What do you do? You just sit and wonder why you’re not doing something.’”
Indeed, it does feel as though Allen and Leno are always “doing something,” even if it can occasionally lead to calamitous injury, with their fingers in any number of active projects at a time.
But whereas Leno never truly branched out into acting (a brief stint in the defunct professional wrestling promotion World Championship Wrestling notwithstanding), Allen has embraced acting alongside comedy for some time now — giving him quite a few options to avoid that dreaded retirement.
Allen is currently involved with the “The Santa Clauses” show (a spinoff sequel to his popular “The Santa Clause” movie franchise) that is streaming on Disney+.
In 2021, Allen just recently wrapped up “Last Man Standing,” a sitcom featuring Allen as “Mike Baxter,” a father hopelessly outnumbered at home by his wife and three daughters (hence the title of the sitcom.)
But the above two shows are simply the most recent in a long line of successful acting endeavors for Allen.
The standup comedian-turned-actor first noticeably burst onto the television screen as the leading man in “Home Improvement,” a similar sitcom to “Last Man Standing” except you can swap out the three daughters for three sons.
“Home Improvement” aired from 1991 to 1999, but still remains so fondly remembered today that Allen has openly discussed rebooting that show.
And yet, Allen’s most enduring and iconic role may actually be one where you don’t even see his face.
Allen lent his iconic voice to “Toy Story” protagonist Buzz Lightyear — a move which has inextricably linked the actor to the role — and has never really looked back as far as timeless popularity goes.
Lightyear remains so popular that as recently as this past Tuesday, Allen revealed that he’s in talks to return to the role — despite Disney seemingly replacing his voice in the spinoff movie “Lightyear.”
Allen made the revelation during Tuesday’s episode of “The Tonight Show”:
Keep in mind, Buzz Lightyear debuted in 1995 and it’s nearly 30 years after the fact.
If turning 70 has given Allen any reason or cause for pause, he’s certainly not showing it if his upcoming projects are anything to go by.
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