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‘Last Man Standing’ Star Tim Allen Says Ending Sitcom After Nine Seasons Was “Very Difficult On Me”

Alexandra Del Rosario
·2 min read

Tim Allen is wrapping yet another long-running family sitcom as Last Man Standing nears its series finale on Fox. Though experienced the actor and executive producer may be at bringing beloved projects like Home Improvement and Galaxy Quest to close, Allen said it was difficult to say good bye to the on-screen family he’s come to know for nearly a decade.

“To be very honest, I have had problems letting go of this one. It’s just been three or four weeks and I’m literally just feeling better. Never have I enjoyed, outside of Home Improvement and maybe moments of Galaxy Quest, one of these jobs,” he said. “This crew, from the guy at the gate to Radford inside to people we ate with, I loved every second of this experience.”

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Ahead of the Last Man Standing hour-long finale, which will air next Thursday on Fox, Allen joined cast members Nancy Travis, Hector Elizondo, Amanda Fuller, Molly McCook and showrunners Matt Berry and Kevin Abbott to reflect on nearly a decade of the Baxter family. Also joining for the Fox press conference were Krista Marie Yu, Jonathan Adams, Christoph Sanders and Jordan Masterson.

Upon remembering his final hours on set, Allen expressed gratitude for everyone involved – from the guard who greeted him at the studio gate to the cameramen who captured the last shots. He also noted that working while anticipating the series’ end was more difficult than working with an abrupt cancellation, as was the case when ABC decided not to renew the series before it moved to Fox.

“This set, I looked at every set piece. I walked through every hallway over and over again, always looking around. It didn’t help. Having this pulled from us several times like that, you get used to sudden death and for some reason I prefer that,” he said.

Allen continued: “For whatever reason this was the end of the nine-year stretch on this. [It’s] very difficult on me.”

To help soften the blow of wrapping a series that has been on the air for nearly a decade, Allen and his fellow cast members boasted the various mementos they snagged from the set. While Abbott took home a plush trout, the symbol of Outdoor Man, Fuller grabbed a picture of a bear from the office walls. Fuller added that she and her fellow cast members also took home wardrobe staples that they seek to auction off for charity.

As for Allen, he said shared that he’s “got a crap load of stuff in my warehouse.” Beyond his warehouse, Allen boasted a miniature display of Outdoor Man, where Mike Baxter rose through the ranks and filmed his 194 vlogs.

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