Disney Adventures (October, 1995)

Jonathan’s Big Adventure

by Liz Smith.

D.A. loves you, our wonderful readers. How much? We’ll tell you. After receiving hundreds of letters, phone calls, faxes, bribes and E-mail messages asking, begging, pleading and whining for yet another article on Jonathan Taylor Thomas, we said, “OK, enough already!” So we hopped on a plane, flew 2,000 miles and landed in Huntsville, Alabama.

There we found Jonathan making his second live-action movie, starring as Tom in Tom Sawyer, due out at Christmas. While trying to get an interview with JTT, we sweated in 90-degree weather. When the location scouts unearthed a pit full of copperhead snakes, we ran away screaming. We flung ourselves in a ditch when a tornado furiously funneled our way. We soaked ourselves in the insect repellent to keep away the huge bugs. And we were there for just two days—Jonathan endured those conditions for more than two months!

One day, after working for seven hours, JTT invited D.A. into his air-conditioned trailer to tell some stories and clear up a few rumors.

As soon as we sat down with Jonathan, we told him that we had two important questions that his thousands of fans ask us about constantly. Funnily enough, Jonathan knew what the first question was.

D.A.: Jonathan, our readers are dying to know…

J.T.T.: Do I have a girlfriend? No, I do not have a girlfriend.

D.A.: OK. Now, do you go on American Online?

J.T.T.: No, I do not. There are lots of people who pretend to be me. I don’t use it. I don’t have any on-line service. I repeat, no on-line service.

Making a movie is an adventure in itself, but when Mother Nature gets involved, watch out! Jonathan, always a good sport, just keeps a poz attitude. 

D.A.: What did you think of the tornado?

J.T.T.: The tornado was quite scary. We were in the middle of doing a scene, and all of a sudden a production assistant came over and said, “OK, we have to get out of here right now!” I don’t know what in the heck was going on. A minute later, I found out there was a tornado in the area and it started to storm and hail. I’d never been in a tornado before, never! Oh, they are scary. Not something I’d want to go through every day.

D.A.: What did you do?

J.T.T.: I jumped in a car. The driver and I stayed in there for a little while to see if the tornado would pass. But it was definitely coming our way, so we said, “OK, we gotta get outta here!” and we drove back to the hotel.

D.A.: Are all these big insects buggin’ you?

J.T.T.: Oh, yeah, I’ve been bitten lots of times. I got mosquito bites and poison ivy. And I got a tick on my leg. I picked it off right before it burrowed in me and built its little home.

D.A. watched as Jonathan filmed a scene in which he chased a little boy right toward the camera and then off camera. Each time, after Jonathan was safely off camera, he would joke around in a different way. Once, he ran smack into the assistant director. Another time, he fell to the ground as if exhausted. But when the camera is on, and the director yells “Action!” JTT is all pro.

D.A.: Did you do research for the role of Tom Sawyer?

J.T.T.: I went to Mark Twain’s house in Hartford, Connecticut, and I read the book Tom Sawyer. It was a novel written by Twain, and that’s why we’re doing the film—it’s got fabulous characters and settings, and it’s a great story of life in 1845.

D.A.: Tom is almost the exact opposite of you: He’s mischievous, he disobeys his aunt all the time, and he’s always getting into trouble. Is it hard for you to play someone like that?

J.T.T.: Well, I am always looking for a challenge when I’m acting, because that helps you become a better actor. And I like playing someone who’s different from me.

D.A.: You had to cut your hair for the part, right?

J.T.T.: Yeah, it was real long. I was growing it for Tom Sawyer. Then I got here and the director said, “Oh, no, we want it short.” So they cut it all off! But I like it shorter. It’s a lot better in this heat.

While D.A. interviewed Jonathan, the lights in the trailer suddenly flashed on and off. “Tornado! Tornado!” Jonathan yelled. D.A. jumped sky-high! Jonathan burst into laughter. Ha, ha, very funny. Just for that, we made him answer more questions.

D.A.: Did you do any stunts in the movie?

J.T.T.: I have no stunts. I’m kidding. I get to fall off a bridge! I fell about three or four feet backwards into cardboard boxes.

D.A.: Did you like doing that?

J.T.T.: No. [Laughing] Yes, I did. I had a good time. Also, I got to float in a river that was freezing cold. I had a wet suit on under my clothes. But it covered only the lower part of my body; I couldn’t wear the top part because it made me look like Ah-nold [Does Arnold Schwarzenegger voice] You know, I looked real biiiig.

As Jonathan and D.A. stepped out of his trailer to say goodbye, something rustled in the grass. “A snake! A snake!” Jonathan shouted as he headed for his transport van. D.A. leaped in the air and ran to our car. We could hear Jonathan in the distance laughing, pleased that he’d fooled us once again.