Remaining hopeful. Season 8 of Last Man Standing was forced to wrap before filming its finale, forcing the April 30 penultimate episode to serve as the final episode of the season. However, star Tim Allen is hopeful that the show will be renewed for a ninth season — and that the original finale can serve as the premiere.
“I think it would be outstanding as a premiere,” the comedian, 66, told Us Weekly exclusively. “You’d save it, we could do some pieces over the summer.”
Last Man Standing aired on ABC for six seasons before getting canceled. Fox then picked it up for seasons 7 and 8 — and Allen says they’ve been talking about how season 9 would look.
“We have planned for a future but this is an extremely unusual circumstance. The studios are closed down. There are no pilots being shot that I know of. I don’t know what they’re going to do, I don’t know how they’re going to get back up,” the Toy Story star said. “But they have to come up with some sort of content. The good news for veteran shows it that we’re already set up. The big question is, ‘Will August work?’ My best guess would be yes, you can probably do a show — maybe not a live audience but a show.”
Allen also added that his character, Mike Baxter, still has a lot to explore — the relationships with his brother and father, his wife getting a second wind in her career and getting to know his extended family.
Plus, he’s excited to hopefully dip his toes into a familiar territory, something he mastered during eight seasons of Home Improvement: having sons.
“I want to find out what Baxter would be like with a boy,” he said, alluding to the character’s relationships with his sons-in-law.
Speaking of the ’90s sitcom, Allen also teased that “there’s always potential” to bring back his past costars to guest-star on the show. Jonathan Taylor Thomas and Patricia Richardson, who played Allen’s son and wife on the ABC show, have guest-starred in two and three episodes of Last Man Standing, respectively. “It’s always so fun.”
Last Man Standing airs on Fox Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET.
