‘Home Improvement’ Stars Tim Allen and Richard Kern Talk About Reuniting After 22 Years With ‘Assembly Required’

Home Improvement stars Tim Allen and Richard Kern are reuniting after 22 years with their new reality series Assembly Required, and the longtime friends and co-stars recently sat down to talk all about it. “All of us are real close,” Allen told Entertainment Tonight, then joking, “I still see Richard way too much, boy, way too much.” Karn added, “It just doesn’t feel like 30 years.”

Home Improvement first debuted in 1991 and ran for eight years, ending in 1999. It’s been 22 years since the finale, and now Allen and Karn are re-teaming for Assembly Required, a do-it-yourself/workshop competition series pitting skilled builders against one another in several challenges that will eventually determine a champion DIYer. Speaking to ET about Karn joining the show, Allen said, “I wanted to have Richard a part of this because it seemed like a reality extension of what Tool Time really was, where I add more power to it, I break something, he’d be the reality side of it, and it was a good fit.”

Allen added, “This [show] is improv for 12 hours a day and I’m out of my mind. It’s just like Al Borland and Tim Taylor.” Karn then chimed in, “Well, it’s improv with editing. Because more than half of the stuff we can’t even use. I don’t think America is ready for that.”

The pair then reflected on their hit series and how it is still a beloved show more than two decades after it ended. “I think it resonates with the parents that grew up with it and are now able to show their kids something that they can all sit together and watch,” Karn said. Allen added, “They always celebrated the family,” referring to the show’s characters. “The couple that got along raised the kids.”

In addition to Allen and Karn, Assembly Required will also feature DIY YouTuber April Wilkerson. She’ll serve as the “resident expert” and “go-to source on the ‘how and why’ of each build, breaking down the complexities and giving the audience a bird’s eye view of what our challengers are up against.” Assembly Required premieres Tuesday, Feb. 23 at 10 p.m. ET on History Channel.