Tim Allen Reprises Home Improvement Role for Last Man Standing Crossover

Tim Allen is having two of his most popular TV characters meet onscreen, as Home Improvement‘s Tim “The Tool Man” Taylor will run into Last Man Standing‘s Mike Baxter. Allen’s one-man crossover will unfold in Last Man Standing season 9, the final season of the series. Fans can catch Allen pulling double-duty on the January 7th episode of Last Man Standing, titled “Dual Time”. Some early teaser footage gives us a taste of what the Tim Taylor/Mike Baxter meeting will be like, as we see a scene of Tool Time‘s host stepping into Mike Baxter’s kitchen, thrilling fans with his signature grunt.

Fox posted the trailer for Last Man Standing season 9 today. In addition to the Home Improvement crossover, the final season of the show will apparently also address the COVID-19 pandemic, using Zoom calls between the Baxter family and the like.

If you’re wondering just how big this ‘Tim Allen Universe’ can get: the actor doesn’t bring his role as The Santa Claus into Last Man Standing. That said, Allen definitely manages to work in a bit about his quarantine beard qualifying him for a Santa Claus role. So we’re getting closer!

Home Improvement was Tim Allen‘s first big TV hit sitcom in the 1990s, before Last Man Standing came alone in 2010s. Home Improvement ran from 1991-1999, and centered on Allen as Time “The Tool Man” Taylor, a former salesman for a tool company who now lives in suburban Detroit with his wife and three kids, and starred in his own TV show called “Tool Time” that is sponsored by the company. The show was a showcase for Tim Allen’s stand-up comedy bits (a la Seinfeld), as well as the conservative star’s American alpha male image. Last Man Standing is in many ways the spiritual successor to Home Improvement, which is why the crossover works.

Here’s the synopsis for Last Man Standing season 9. You can watch the trailer above!

In “Time Flies,” a series of time jumps finds Mike & Vanessa with two new grandchildren as well as Mandy and Kyle living with them. Mike, accidentally/on-purpose, gets involved when Vanessa and Mandy clash over Vanessa’s “helpfulness.” Meanwhile at Outdoor Man, Chuck desperately hopes its last call on Ed’s mixology happy hour.

Last Man Standing season will premiere in a special Sunday night slot on Jan 3rd at 8:30pm ET. The rest of season 9 will air in its regular slot on Thursdays at 9:30 pm ET.