Patricia Richardson Tim Allen Home Improvement

Patricia Richardson and Tim Allen spent years starring together on the beloved 1990s sitcom “Home Improvement” before it ended in 1999. Despite their incredible chemistry onscreen, Richardson has spoken out this week to reveal that she and Allen are no longer close, as she feels that he has “never really forgiven” her for wanting to walk away from the show.

Patricia Richardson Believes Tim Allen Has ‘Never Really Forgiven’ Her

69-year-old Patricia Richardson starred on “Home Improvement” for eight seasons as Jill Taylor beginning in 1991.

While she enjoyed her time on the series, she decided it was time to call it quits in 1999. This did not sit well with both network executives and Allen, who all desperately wanted the show to continue. 

“So then they went to Tim, and they said let’s do it with dead Jill,” she told Entertainment Tonight, referring to the television executives. 

“And then Tim was like, I don’t think we can do that. So then he went out and said well, I think it’s time to end ‘Home Improvement.'”

Though Richardson went on to reunite with Allen for a 2016 episode of his sitcom “Last Man Standing,” she admitted that she still fears that he has “never really forgiven me for not wanting to do the ninth year.”

“He loved Tim Taylor,” she said, referring to Allen’s character. “Tim Taylor was this happily married man with his great boys and great life, and so he wanted that show to go on forever.”

Related: Tim Allen Teaches Liberals A Brutal Lesson About Capitalism On ‘Last Man Standing’

Patricia Richardson’s Casting On ‘Home Improvement’

Richardson also recalled how she was initially cast on the wildly popular sitcom.

“[The network said] we need to have someone that challenges him and is as much a feminist as he is a masculinist,” she said. “There has to be an equal struggle.”

“They called me in and said, ‘There is this guy, he’s a standup, he won an award, he has a special on Showtime,” Richardson added of Allen.

“I had never heard of him, I had never heard of that show and I had already seen one show that had failed… that had been done with a standup and a family and everything.”

She went on to admit that she almost declined the part because she wanted to do roles that were more serious at the time. 

“I didn’t want to do any more sitcoms, and I certainly did not want to be a thankless mom,” she explained. “I didn’t audition for it. I came in and they said, ‘We want you to start tomorrow.'”

As soon as Richardson met Allen, however, it was obvious that their chemistry was electric. 

“Immediately, I loved him,” she said.

Related: ‘Last Man Standing’ Star Tim Allen Lends His Voice To Help GOP

‘Home Improvement’ Resonated With Fans

Right from the start, Richardson could see that the show was resonating with fans.

“The primary thing I saw the most in the mail was, ‘Are you looking through our windows? The things you and Tim fight about are just like our family,'” Richardson remembered. “Or, ‘I get it, I have three sons too,’ or, ‘This is so freaky, because it’s just like our family!'”

“It was very gratifying to me, because Tim and I worked so hard,” she added. 

Though “Home Improvement” has been off the air for over twenty years, it still brings joy to millions of fans to this day. 

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