Conservative Actor Tim Allen Gets New Show ‘Shifting Gears’ as ‘Woke’ Entertainment is Rejected

Christian conservative actor Tim Allen is returning to ABC with the new comedy sitcom Shifting Gears.

“We are at it again!” the actor wrote on Facebook. “ABC just ordered a comedy pilot, ‘Shifting Gears.’ … Stay tuned!”

Variety reports that Allen will star and executive produce the show, which will mark his third time appearing on ABC, following his long-running shows Home Improvement (1991-1999) and Last Man Standing (2011-2021). Of course, Allen has also starred as Santa Claus in The Santa Clause film trilogy and voiced Buzz Lightyear in Toy Story.

“In the [Shifting Gears] project, Allen plays Matt, the ‘stubborn, widowed owner of a classic car restoration shop. When Matt’s estranged daughter and her teenage kids move into his house, the real restoration begins,’” Variety summarizes.

ABC ordered a pilot season of Shifting Gears to evaluate demand for the program.

In 2017, the network cancelled Last Man Standing following its sixth season, sparking a fierce controversy over the reason behind its decision.

Last Man Standing had garnered a solid 8.1 million viewers in its sixth season, so fans of the show speculated ABC cancelled it because of the show’s right-leaning political commentary.

Allen plays the Christian conservative father Mike Baxter who repeatedly criticizes high taxes, political correctness, speech codes on college campuses, and frequently makes pointed jokes at liberal’s expense. As Focus on the Family’s Plugged In observed, the show was “one of the only truly conservative outlets on television.”

Unlike most television shows today, Last Man Standing provides a positive portrayal of marriage and masculinity. According to the show’s description,

Mike Baxter is a happily married father of three daughters who finds himself the odd man out as he tries to maintain his manliness in a home surrounded by women. Mike tries to escape all the female drama at home in the warm, manly embrace of his job at the Outdoor Man store, a sporting goods emporium where he is marketing director. He also revels in his Outdoor Man vlog, which he uses as a pulpit for his opinions — which often have nothing to do with the store’s merchandise. When he’s supposed to be selling mountain bikes or kayaks, he somehow ends up spouting off about the environment, health care, international politics or any other topic occupying his mind.

After outcry from its fans, Last Man Standing was picked up by Fox, running for three more seasons before its final episode aired on May 20, 2021.

Tim Allen also recently starred in The Santa Clauses on Disney+, based on The Santa Clause film trilogy. Allen, who was one of the show’s executive producers, insisted on keeping Christmas’ distinctly religious purpose as a theme in the show.

“It originally had a lot of otherworldly characters, and ghosts, and goblins. I said no, this is Christ-mas. Its Christ-mas. It literally is a religious holiday,” Allen said about the show, adding,

We don’t have to blow trumpets, but I do want you to acknowledge it. That’s what this is about. If you want to get into Santa Claus, you’re gonna have to go back to history, and it’s all about religion.

Allen’s insistence on keeping the focus on Christ in The Santa Clauses is all the more remarkable considering it was produced for The Walt Disney Co., which has becoming increasingly and unabashedly “woke” over the past several years – suffering great financial losses as a result.

As the Daily Citizen has previously reported, its animated movie Lightyear, “which featured homosexual characters and subplots … likely lost Disney north of $100 million.”

Disney subsequently released Strange World, where “the main character’s homosexuality is ‘the crux on which this [movie’s] narrative revolves.’”

“Though the studio spent between $135 and $180 million to produce the film (not including advertising costs), Strange World earned only $73 million at the box office, once again likely losing Disney more than $100 million.”

These instances show that most Americans simply do not want overtly sexual and homosexual themes being pushed on their children. But what they do want, as the success of Last Man Standing shows, is more conservative content that does not reject or mock their values.

Given Tim Allen’s track record, that’s likely what Shifting Gears will aim to deliver.

Do you plan on watching Shifting Gears when it premiers?

If you want to learn more about the entertainment content your family is viewing, check out Focus on the Family’s free service Plugged In. The Plugged In team reviews movies, television shows, music, games, books and more. You can read Plugged In’s review of Last Man Standing here.

Related articles and resources:

Tim Allen’s New Santa Clause Series Proclaims Jesus’ Birth in Second Season

Tim Allen Insisted on Keeping ‘Christ’ in ‘Christmas’ for New Santa Clause Series

Last Man Standing

Photo from Getty Images.