Shifting Gears has made an effort not to directly address Tim Allen‘s character Matt’s political views — and there’s a reason for that.
“You don’t know how smart this guy is. You don’t know who Matt Parker is,” Allen, 72, exclusively told Us Weekly. “He’s a little hard to pin down about what he really thinks [specifically politically].”
Allen noted that he didn’t want politics to play a big role in Matt’s story, adding, “I like to skirt all that. This guy has to deal with a car shop and always wanted to be a designer and artist. He’s not what you think. He knows about ballet and art. We’ll find out all that. I’ve always wanted to play an artist that’s also a fundamental fixer.”
ABC’s Shifting Gears had a different approach compared to other sitcom characters Allen has played in the past — including Last Man Standing’s Mike.
“Mike Baxter did his vlogs and it showed his fix-it mentality,” he recalled. “If you were just a fix it person, how would you fix things? It’s whatever political system fixes things. I’m for it. Now you don’t know with Matt Parker.”
Shifting Gears, which premiered in January 2025, is set in a car restoration shop opened by Matt. After reuniting with his estranged daughter, Riley (Kat Dennings), the duo work to repair cars — and their relationship.
The hit series began three years after Allen’s previous sitcom, Last Man Standing, completed its nine-season run. Before Last Man Standing, Allen was best known for playing Tim “The Toolman” Taylor on ABC’s Home Improvement, which ran from 1991 to 1999, as well as lending his voice to the hit Toy Story films and his holiday classic, The Santa Clause.
“This is a new character and it’s much closer to [who I am]. I’ve been through grief in my life with losing my father,” Allen exclusively told Us in January 2025 about his latest role. “I’ve been blessed to be a comedian and so that’s who this [character] is. If I did it again, I wanted to get as much closer to the [man] that I am.”
Allen revealed he wasn’t planning to return to network TV until Shifting Gears came along.
“It was a complicated decision. I was doing Disney+’s Santa Clause series at the time and I said, ‘I really can’t think about this now,’” Allen noted. “Do I want to do linear TV? I was so depressed at how streaming has hurt television. So if I did it, I want to elevate it.”
He continued: “I’ve done Mike Baxter [on Last Man Standing] and Tim Taylor [on Home Improvement]. So if I do this again, I pitched three things: I want a guy that lost his wife recently, so he’s dealing with grief; I want a guy with the family that doesn’t get along; And then he has a custom car shop.”
More recently, Allen reflected on how playing a sitcom dad was inspired by his offscreen experience as a father, telling Us, “When it was easy to be a TV parent, it’s easy. When it’s difficult to be a TV parent, you really are of no value. [With the] Home Improvement kids, it was so long ago and I was brand new, and it was very difficult for me to be anywhere near a mentor. It wasn’t until later that I became more of a mentor. But they all had great parents.”
Shifting Gears airs on ABC Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET before streaming the next day on Hulu.
