Tim Allen has had a prolific sitcom presence with Home Improvement and Last Man Standing so it only makes sense that his former costars appear on his new show, Shifting Gears.
Allen got his start as a comedian in the ’70s. He expanded into acting with his role as Tim “The Toolman” Taylor on ABC’s Home Improvement, which scored him a Golden Globe Award. The sitcom, which ran from 1991 to 1999, made Allen a household name.
Allen continued to find success playing America’s favorite TV dad as Mike Baxter on Last Man Standing from 2011 to 2021. After Last Man Standing ended, the actor waited four years before returning to sitcoms Shifting Gears.
“It was a complicated decision. I was doing Disney+’s Santa Claus series at the time and I said, ‘I really can’t think about this now,'” he exclusively told Us Weekly in January 2025. “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.”
‘Last Man Standing’ Cast: Where Are They Now? Tim Allen, Nancy Travis, Kaitlyn Dever and More
Allen reflected on his past experience on the small screen, saying, “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.”
At the time, Allen praised the chance to play a character who was “not like the other guys.”
“He’s more like me. I’m more of an artist. I was a design student and a philosopher and my standup comedy is really about messing with people in a good way,” he noted. “I came from a huge family run by women. So my perspective is very different about men. I don’t think we run things. So I want this to be that guy. He’s not a man’s man in that term, and he wasn’t trying to be anything but what he does.”
Allen leaned into his creative freedom on Shifting Gears by bringing in some familiar faces including former costars Nancy Travis and Jay Leno.
Keep scrolling for more of Allen’s past sitcom cast members that should make an appearance now that Shifting Gears has been renewed for season 2:
Patricia Richardson
After playing Allen’s first sitcom wife, Richardson reunited with her Home Improvement husband on several episodes of Last Man Standing. Richardson’s cameo even featured a nod at her Home Improvement character when she shared the screen with Allen and their on screen son Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
Home Improvement might not be revived any time soon but the next best thing would be Richardson on Shifting Gears.
Jonathan Taylor Thomas
Thomas joined Home Improvement when it premiered but exited the series early to focus on school. He ultimately made the decision to step back from acting entirely, but reunited with his onscreen dad for four episodes of Allen’s next sitcom, Last Man Standing, and later directed three episodes of the show.
While Thomas has remained out of the public eye since his childhood success, Allen teased a potential Shifting Gears collaboration.
“Everything is a possibility,” Allen exclusively told Us about Thomas making an appearance on his new ABC sitcom. “He just came back [to the last episode we filmed]. He showed up on the set.”
Allen said he would love nothing more than to share the screen with Thomas again, adding, “He’s literally my kid. I raised that kid for eight years on Home Improvement. “
Taran Noah Smith
Smith is another one of Allen’s former onscreen sons who has taken a step back from acting. Shifting Gears offers Smith an opportunity to potentially make a brief return after working with Allen on Home Improvement.
Richard Karn
After starring together on Home Improvement, Karn made a two-episode guest appearance on Last Man Standing. It would be a nice nod to once again see Karn and Allen together but this time on Shifting Gears.
Nancy Travis
Travis was introduced in one episode of Shifting Gears as a possible love interest for Allen’s character. While Allen’s Matt and Jenna Elfman‘s character, Eve ,are being paired off in the long term, Travis should still reprise her role somehow in season 2.
“It was great not to play the wife [this time]. It was great. It was really fun to be able to just come in and have a whole wealth of knowledge and rapport working with Tim. In terms of comedic rhythm, knowing how to set up a joke and how to tell a story together, it was great to be able to take that and apply it to Charlotte,” Travis told Us in February 2025. “You wonder how Nancy Travis is going to come back into this Shifting Gears world and I think it’s a unique and clever way that they’ve engineered this.”
She continued: “I do enjoy working with him but I think that it’s fun to explore new and different relationships between characters. It is very meta — maybe too meta. I really like what they created, which is a soulmate friend. Maybe it’s like the ghost of his ex-wife — Vanessa — who comes in the spirit of somebody else. But I like the nuances of what they created with this different relationship.”
‘Home Improvement’ Cast: Where Are They Now?
Alexandra Krosney and Amanda Fuller
During their individual times on Last Man Standing, Krosney and Fuller shared the role of Allen’s eldest daughter. Why not lean into it by having them play the same character on Shifting Gears? Roseanne and The Conners have gotten that creative with Lecy Goranson and Sarah Chalke so Shifting Gears can as well.
Molly Ephraim and Molly McCook
The same idea goes for Ephraim and McCook — who shared the role of Mandy on Last Man Standing.
Kaitlyn Dever
Since playing Eve on Last Man Standing, Dever has found success on shows such as Apple Cider Vinegar and The Last of Us. But some of Us are still hoping Dever would reunite with her onscreen sitcom parents on Shifting Gears — somehow.
“Tim is nothing if not loyal. So it was great to walk on that set and see most of the crew was from Last Man Standing,” Travis told Us about her reunion with Allen. “The director John Pasquin did so many episodes of Last Man Standing and is a personal friend. It was just so great to feel this sense of reunion.”
Travis didn’t rule out more Last Man Standing cameos on Shifting Gears, adding, “I wouldn’t be surprised if everybody from Last Man Standing shows up on Shifting Gears in one way or another. If Tim has his way, he’ll make sure that everybody from [costar Kat Dennings‘] 2 Broke Girls comes on too.”
Christoph Sanders
Sanders won Us over as Kyle on Last Man Standing so seeing him and Allen working together again is definitely on our TV wishlist.
Jordan Masterson
Masterson took over the role of Ryan on Last Man Standing after it was briefly played by Nick Jonas in one episode. There should be room for a reunion on Shifting Gears — preferably with more Last Man Standing alums.
Héctor Elizondo
Last Man Standing viewers got used to weekly scenes between Allen and Elizondo. As Shifting Gears makes plans for season 2, they should add Elizondo to their list of possible cameos.
