Former Home Improvement star Zachery Ty Bryan is facing fresh legal issues after being arrested for DUI in Oklahoma last week, marking his second DUI arrest this year. Bryan, who became a household name playing Brad Taylor on the beloved sitcom, was detained after police observed him sleeping in the back seat of his vehicle. While initially letting him be, officers later saw Bryan driving and initiated a traffic stop. According to police, Bryan admitted to being intoxicated and failed field sobriety tests. Though he declined to take a breathalyzer test, he reportedly claimed his sobriety was at a level of “five” on a scale of 0 to 10. He was arrested and charged with DUI.
This incident comes just months after Bryan’s first DUI arrest in February, which resulted in a felony charge and a misdemeanor charge for contempt of court. In addition to the DUIs, Bryan has been dealing with several legal issues in recent years, including a felony assault charge related to domestic violence. He pleaded guilty to the charge in 2023, was sentenced to probation, and spent seven days in jail. Bryan had also been involved in a 2020 assault case, for which he received probation.
Beyond his personal legal issues, Bryan is also facing financial difficulties. In 2023, he was accused of defrauding investors with an ag-tech startup scheme, which led to a court order requiring him to pay over $108,000 to a film investor. The debt has now risen to over $121,000, as Bryan has yet to settle the amount.
Home Improvement Revival in Jeopardy
Bryan’s ongoing legal issues would certainly pose a significant challenge to any potential Home Improvement revival, a concept that Tim Allen had teased in the past. However, co-star Patricia Richardson, who played Jill Taylor on the series, has publicly shot down the idea of a revival, clarifying that Allen’s statements about a possible return to the show were not accurate.
Richardson explained on the Back to the Best podcast that she hadn’t heard any concrete plans for a revival from Allen and expressed doubt about the show’s feasibility without several key players. “I would not want to [do a revival],” she said. “Zach is now a felon… Taran [Noah Smith] hasn’t acted since he left the show… Jonathan [Taylor Thomas] is not really interested in acting… and we don’t have Wilson.”
She also noted that without the character of Wilson, played by the late Earl Hindman, the show would not feel the same.
While Home Improvement continues to be a beloved classic, available for streaming on Disney+, it seems unlikely that a revival will come to fruition anytime soon, especially given Bryan’s legal and personal challenges.
Fans of the show will have to hold out hope for a future where Home Improvement can be remembered fondly, but a reunion or revival appears increasingly unlikely.
