While Tim Allen fans will be able to hear the comedian’s (definitely not “old”) voice loud and clear as Buzz Lightyear in the long-awaited Toy Story 5, we’ll be waiting a bit longer to see him return to the small screen for Shifting Gears Season 3. The sitcom was absent from ABC’s Fall TV lineup, and won’t be returning for the 2026 TV schedule at all, as it’s being held as a midseason premiere alongside High Potential. Thankfully, Allen dropped a few update-related breadcrumbs.

Allen spoke with US Weekly about several of his most iconic projects and characters, with the bulk of the conversation geared towards Pixar’s next mega-sequel. But the conversation did gets steered towards Shifting Gears, which will officially kick off the third season’s production in July, with Allen suggesting he wants the show to follow in the footsteps of another sitcom he enjoys. But first, he teased a possible romantic dilemma coming Matt’s way involving Jenna Elfman’s Eve after his shocking decision to join her European trip in the Season 2 finale. As he put it:

We still have yet to see Matt and Eve back on U.S. soil, and he’s talking about possibly moving in with her?!? I guess Tim Allen mentioning it is different from “Matt” talking about it, but it still seems like good intel. I’m having the same aghast reaction thinking about Eve moving in with Matt’s fam in Season 3. I mean, wasn’t Matt literally on a date with another woman in the finale when he and Eve crossed paths again?

Interestingly enough, Jenna Elfman landed a lead role in another new TV show, Fox’s The Interrogator, but she’s since said that she’ll be able to “go play” with the Shifting Gears cast and crew without worries about conflicting. That obviously doesn't mean they definitely getting together for the long haul in the nearest future, especially if Allen's desire for them to take things slowly is taken into account.

How Tim Allen Wants Shifting Gears To Take Note From The A+ Sitcom Kim's Convenience

Stemming from his thoughts about living situations possibly changing in Season 3, Tim Allen namechecked the beloved Canadian comedy Kim's Convenience, which helped turn Simu Liu into a bigger star, when sharing how he'd like the Parkers' dynamic to change up. As he put it:

It's an interesting comparison to make, all things considered, but both shows are about working blue-collar characters, so it matches up well enough.

In Kim's Convenience, the Kim family's apartment is just above the titular shop, making for quite convenient location changes, while Janet eventually moves into her own, with Jung living with his bestie Kimchee in another apartment.

With Matt's long-gone son Sam (played by Luke Macfarlane) returning near the end of Season 3, it's certainly possible that Matt's house will be a little too full for comfort. But if Riley is able to put money together for her and the kids to move out, or if Matt moves in with Eve and gives his kids the family home, that could ease some of the pressure.

Here's hoping Shifting Gears Season 3 goes the whole nine yards by not only taking inspiration from Kim's Convenience for the characters' living quarters, but by actually bringing in stars Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Jean Yoon for cameos.

Stay tuned for more Season 3 details, and stream the first two seasons of Shifting Gears via Disney+ subscription.

Shifting Gears is officially returning to the 2026 TV schedule with Season 3. Amidst cancellation fears for Tim Allen and Kat Dennings' ABC sitcom, it's officially been announced that the comedy will return for more adventures with the Parker family, and Kat Dennings' quick response has me all sorts of revved up for the road ahead.

Dennings reacted not long after the news broke, sharing a quick message on Instagram with followers that was short, sweet, and to the point. Really, it's all she needed to say, as we've waited months to hear these three words from the actress:

Riley has a big storyline set up for Shifting Gears Season 3, after Season 2 ended with both Gabe and her ex-boyfriend Andy professing their love for her. Now, she's caught in the midst of a love triangle, just one season after she successfully celebrated her divorce.

As for Tim Allen's Matt, he was last seen on a spontaneous trip abroad with Eve. They're back together after that big breakup, which put Matt back out on the dating scene for a brief period. As fun as it was to see guest stars from other sitcoms make an appearance as his girlfriend, I'm glad Shifting Gears brought Eve back into the picture.

I'm expecting Shifting Gears Season 3 to be a much more impactful season for Seann William Scott's Gabe, now that he's finally made it known he has feelings for Riley. It's going to be super awkward at the shop now if Matt finds out, especially if Riley ends up rejecting him and going back to date Andy.

I'm of the mind that Gabe and Riley will ultimately end up together, but Shifting Gears has made the situation a whole "will they, won't they" storyline that almost makes it feel too soon for it to happen. But maybe after two seasons sitting on the cancellation bubble, the writers will feel compelled to pull the trigger, sensing that now is their chance to act.

Shifting Gears is back on ABC's fall schedule with Season 3. I can't wait to see what Matt, Riley, and the kids have going on this season, and I hope all the drama at the end of Season 2 works out well.

Some spoilers about relationships on Shifting Gears can be found in this article, so if you haven’t caught the episode yet, don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Shifting Gears ended its second season this week with a slew of unexpected cliffhangers. Kat Dennings’ Riley ended up in a love triangle with Jesse Williams and Seann William Scott’s characters. Tim Allen’s Matt Parker literally left the country with Jenna Elfman’s Eve in an unexpected and definitely surprising twist of events. It was a real, “if that plane leaves the ground and you’re not with him, you’ll regret it” sort of moment.

Last season, rumors abounded that Shifting Gears was on the bubble, and this season the chatter surrounding the half-hour comedy has been equivalent. The show does pretty well on linear television, and it and Abbott Elementary both tend to explode on Hulu after the initial airing, as well. Though it is germane to point out that Abbott’s premiere this season saw an explosive increase of 134% in additional Hulu viewers, while Shifting was only up 73%.

Because of this, some online flak toward the Tim Allen show has persisted, but I do think there is some reason to have hope for Season 3.

Will Shifting Gears Get Renewed For Season 3?

ABC tends to make renewal decisions for most shows in the spring, though early renewals have come down the pipeline in recent years. Specifically, as a fan of the show, I am hoping for a renewal, but outside of my generally wanting to thing positive things about what’s next, there is some evidence that leans toward potential renewal.

• The first reason? The ratings on television are actually pretty good. In Season 2, it has averaged a consistent 3.5-4.5 million viewers on a weekly basis, and also ranks among the highest telecasts airing on TV on Wednesday nights – even doing better than programming like Survivor and Abbott Elementary. And it does add on quite a bit when it comes to Hulu.
• The second reason? ABC let the show end on two gigantic cliffhangers. This could be a go hard or go home play, or it could mean the showrunners are confident there will be more to come.
• A third intriguing note? The showrunner has spoken out about being excited about what's next. More below on that.

Showrunner Michelle Nader hasn’t spoken about the possibility of a renewal or not, but she did say the cliffhanger ending with Andy and Gabriel was not originally in the cards. However, the writing team got really excited about the possibilities with the characters because of how great Grey’s Anatomy alum Jesse Williams has been. (although CinemaBlend's own Mick Joest has a hot take about this.) Additionally, she told The Wrap she firmly feels the sitcom is going in a good direction and is what the audience wants right now.

Here’s looking at you, Michelle Nader.

Honestly, if we’re getting into the nitty gritty of the finale, and what’s potentially next, the most surprising thing about the finale was not where the two leads ended up in their romantic lives, but how. Gabriel and Riley have been teasing a will-they, won’t-they thing for two seasons, and I’m not sure we needed the extra scene with the love triangle between Gabriel, Andy and Riley tacked onto the end. (Though clarifying the show loves having Jesse Williams makes so much sense, now.) Per Matt and Eve, I long suspected Elfman would be back, but the idea that both Matt and Eve appeared at the same gin joint in the same town (in this case the hilariously large Los Angeles) on the same night was not how I expected that to play out.

So, I do think the finale had a little room for improvement, but I overall really, really enjoy Tim Allen and Kat Dennings’ verbal sparring. I enjoy that Tim Allen has committed to sticking with a live studio audience. I love pretty much all the characters, and I don’t think the series has reached its creative zenith yet. Honestly, it’s not even close.

So, please, won’t you play it [again], ABC?

Kat Dennings is one of the few actors to play prominent characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe who didn’t originate from the comics. Darcy Lewis was Jane Foster’s gal pal in the first two Thor movies, then she returned as one of the key supporting characters in WandaVision, and that was followed by a cameo in Thor: Love and Thunder and alternate versions of Darcy appearing throughout What If… ?. So can we expect to see Dennings reprise this role in any upcoming Marvel movies or upcoming Marvel TV shows? Well, she had a pretty funny reaction when she was asked that question.

These days, Kat Dennings stars opposite Tim Allen in Shifting Gears, but while promoting her ABC series, she was asked if we’ll see her in Avengers: Doomsday. This is how she amusingly responded to ET:

First off, I like how Kat Dennings initially thought Doomsday might be an episode of Shifting Gears rather than one of the biggest 2026 movie releases. Then, despite giving the usual Marvel line of how she can’t say anything about if she’s any upcoming MCU projects, she made it abundantly clear that she’s not in Avengers: Doomsday. Then Dennings realized that because she’s been scanned, technically Marvel Studios could insert Darcy into anything it wants, even if she didn’t say anything. Watch it all for yourself:

This was quite the journey, but once again, don’t expect to see Darcy Lewis in Avengers: Doomsday. Now, Kat Dennings didn’t say anything about if she’s in Avengers: Secret Wars, though I imagine her schedule on Shifting Gears would make it difficult to participate in the ending of The Multiverse Saga too. Also, because of the way my mind works, when Dennings said at the end, “I’m in the system,” I thought back to this moment with Michael Peña’s Luis in Ant-Man:

So Darcy Lewis won’t be around for the forthcoming battle with Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom, but don’t worry, there’s plenty of familiar faces who are in on the action. MCU heavy hitters like Captain America, Thor, Ant-Man, Shang-Chi, Black Panther, Loki and even Steve Rogers will be joined by the New Avengers (formerly known as the Thunderbolts), the Fantastic Four team introduced last year in First Steps, and various X-Men characters reprised by their actors from the Fox franchise. As with the last two Avengers movies, Joe and Anthony Russo are directing both Doomsday and Secret Wars, and Stephen McFeely and Michael Waldron wrote both movies.

As we count down the months to Avengers: Doomsday’s December 18 release, you’re always welcome to stream Kat Dennings’ past MCU appearances with a Disney+ subscription. Otherwise, tune into Shifting Gears Wednesdays at 8 pm ET on ABC, or stream new episodes afterwards with a Hulu subscription.

Having co-starred opposite Tim Allen for what will be two seasons of ABC's Shifting Gears by the time finales hit the 2026 TV schedule, Kat Dennings is well aware of what working with Tim Allen is like. Something that may surprise upwards of nobody is that the Home Improvement vet likes when cars are on topic, particularly his own vehicles; the sitcom's location wasn't chosen randomly from a hat. A pro tip from Dennings? Maybe don't speak respectfully about Jay Leno's car collection.

To be sure, the 2 Broke Girls vet didn't come right out and say that during her most recent Jimmy Kimmel Live! appearance, but she definitely did imply it with her amusing answers and body language after the host brought up the two Last Man Standing vets and their respective wheeled passions. And it all stemmed from a conversation about seat belts, no doubt a part of everyone's daily exchanges. In any case, here's how Dennings addressed Allen's hobby-and-then-some:

It's hard for me to think about having 100 cars in the same area without feeling anxious pangs about not being able to find a place to park, even if they're my own cars. Because then it's like, "Where the hell did I get all these cars?" and the anxiety strengthens.

No such issues for Jay Leno, who appeared in Shifting Gears' first season earlier this year. Jimmy Kimmel knows it, and vicariously poked fun at Tim Allen through the former Tonight Show host, leading to the following exchange:

• JIMMY: Although Jay Leno laughs at Tim Allen’s 100 cars collection.
• KAT: I know, I know. Jay’s more of the type, I know. I’ve heard a lot. I‘ve heard all about this.
• JIMMY: Well, you know, [Tim] is always like, ‘Well, Jay has a few more cars than I do.’ I’m like, ‘This is a world I know nothing about.’

Kat Dennings does look like the wife/daughter/colleague who has heard the same old story about the same old shit time and time again from a husband/father/car-loving colleague without ever having shown all that much affection for it in the first place. But still trying to be genial about it, which makes it that much funnier to think about Allen offhandedly grunting about how many cars Jay Leno has at random points of the day, unable to let that sliver of his brain go unchecked for very long.

Kimmel continued, reveling in the knowledge of the mini-rivalry:

• JIMMY: I like the idea that there is a rivalry there, "Who has 100 cars?" and that’s not enough.
• KAT: I mean Jay did come on the show as himself, which is very cute.
• JIMMY: To brag about how many cars he has.
• KAT: I guess. I can’t relate. This is an expensive hobby that I don’t have access to.

The Dollface vet noted that she only has one car, and she's not interested in owning another 99 anytime soon, even if it wasn't financially impossible. This is a mindset I can get behind. Probably to push it because the battery is dead.

Check out Kat Dennings' interview with Jimmy Kimmel below, which also involves some talk concerning a commercial about bedwetting.

Shifting Gears will continue its Season 2 run on the 2025 TV schedule every Wednesday night on ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET.

Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Shifting Gears Season 2 episode "Scary." Stream the episode with a Hulu subscription and read at your own risk!

Shifting Gears Season 2 is blazing through its run in the 2025 TV schedule, and this latest batch of episodes has been full of cameos and references to past shows. More often than not, the references are tied to stuff Tim Allen has done, so I was thrilled to see Kat Dennings get the nod for a change.

Obviously, Dennings doesn't have quite as prolific a television career as her veteran co-star, but that doesn't mean the ABC series can't have some fun with her past projects. Fortunately, it did just that in "Scary," and referenced her CBS sitcom that put her on the map.

Shifting Gears Made A 2 Broke Girls Reference

Riley met Gabe, Stitch, and Amelie out at the bar for Halloween, only to find the world at large confused by her "Mama Bear" costume. Stitch left the conversation to talk to two women in the corner, who just so happened to be wearing Williamsburg Diner outfits, the same uniforms Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs wore on 2 Broke Girls.

It's not quite as substantial as having Behrs appear in a guest role, and maybe now that The Neighborhood is ending, there's a chance that will happen in the future. For now, it's cool to see a nod to her beloved CBS series in the meantime, and hopefully, we get more stuff like that in the future.

Tim Allen's Past Shows Have Already Gotten A Nod In Shifting Gears Season 2

As mentioned, Shifting Gears has already made a couple of references to Tim Allen's past projects and welcomed both Last Man Standing and Home Improvement stars in the Season 2 premiere. This season has also been pretty heavy on celebrity cameos, with everyone from athletes like Mookie Betts to former late-night host Lilly Singh appearing on the ABC sitcom.

With so many cameos happening with people from Tim Allen's circle coming into the show, I'm wondering when Kat Dennings and Disney will start to funnel in people from former and upcoming Marvel movies. After all, we can't forget about her time in the Thor franchise! I would love to see anyone from those movies make an appearance, though it may be a bit much to ask for Chris Hemsworth or Natalie Portman to appear on ABC primetime.

I'm hoping that someone working on Shifting Gears is already on the case, and working to ensure we get more references to Kat Dennings' past in Hollywood in future episodes. Who knows? Maybe the 2 Broke Girls nod was just the start of some much bigger references to come. I'd love to see it, but truth be told I'm just enjoying the ride at the moment.

Shifting Gears airs on ABC on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm enjoying the direction that Season 2 is headed in so far, though am wondering if there's some major drama on the way as Amelie gets suspicious of her friendship with Gabe.

We’re still around a month away from Fall TV shows peppering the 2025 premiere schedule, but I have little hesitation in thinking that the second season of Tim Allen’s Shifting Gears is going to be just as much of a ratings winner as the first was. Part of that optimism is no doubt linked to the few details we already know about the upcoming episodes, such as the trio of former Home Improvement stars set to appear. Now we know of another celeb who’ll likely pop up inside Matt’s shop.

In what I believe will be her first big TV role of the year, multi-hyphenate comedian Lilly Singh is joining the Shifting Gears family for a Season 2 guest spot, and will likely be showing up in one of the earlier episodes, just based on where the show is with its live-audience filming process. When she arrives, expect to see some friction with Kat Dennings’ Riley.

According to TVLine, Singh will portray a character named Jen who will initially get along quite well with Riley as a new friend. The two women will apparently bond very quickly with motherhood being a source of common ground. But it turns out that’ll also be what upends the short-lived kinship, as some “unexpected mama drama” causes the characters to turn against each other.

Here’s hoping things don’t go sideways for Riley and Jen while they’re still inside the shop, since that could be disastrous for any of the restored cars in their immediate vicinity. Riley might not be able to survive life on Matt’s bad side if such an outcome happens.

Lilly Singh more or less broke the news herself on Shifting Gears’ social media with a video from the set, as seen below:

No stranger to TV and YouTube, Lilly Singh previously teamed up with the House of Mouse for Disney+’s musical comedy series Muppets Mayhem, which was sadly cancelled by the platform despite our Season 2 wishes. Earlier in the 2025 movie schedule, Singh reprised her role of Tiffany Fluffit for The Bad Guys 2. She also started hosting the web series Shame Less with Lilly Singh, and will soon head up the comedy feature Doin’ It, which will hit theaters on September 19.

Meanwhile, Shifting Gears will not only be welcoming back Season 1 recurrer Nancy Travis (of Last Man Standing fame), but will also bring in Patricia Richardson, Richard Karn and Debbe Dunning to reunite with Tim Allen for an as yet undisclosed storyline.

Set your DVRs, because Shifting Gears will be back for its Season 2 premiere on ABC on Wednesday, October 1.

If you’re anything like me, then deciding what to wear when you leave the house can be a challenge. So, when you add in the factor of being famous and going to splashy public events, it makes sense that dressing for such occasions would involve even more thought, prep and planning. Well, Kat Dennings just made a very 2 Broke Girls-like fashion admission that’s funny, but also incredibly relatable.

What 2 Broke Girls Admission Did Kat Dennings Just Make?

While the 2025 TV schedule will eventually bring us Shifting Gears Season 2, Kat Dennings has been looking back lately. Not only did she recently pose with Captain America’s shield and get fans’ hopes up that she might return to her role as one of the best MCU sidekicks, Darcy, at some point, but she also took a trip to Avengers Campus at Disneyland, which led to some surprises for her.

However, the star (who’s now playing a mom for the first time on her ABC comedy with Tim Allen) took to Instagram recently to share a memory from her previous hit sitcom, 2 Broke Girls, which ran on CBS for six seasons. In her post, we see Dennings with co-star Beth Behrs at the People’s Choice Awards in 2012, and while both look great, the WandaVision talent had a secret about the moment to tell fans, saying in the caption:

Oh, boy. I think most of us know what this is like, right? You have your mind set on a particular outfit for a specific upcoming event, but then the time comes to get those clothes on and something goes wrong. Busted seams, broken zipper, it doesn’t fit as well as it did or look as good on you as you remember…whatever it is, it’s now time for a Fashion Emergency Plan B. And, when you need to be out the door, sometimes you just gotta whip out the most appropriate item, throw it on and hope for the best. Here’s what she ended up wearing:

Luckily, the live-audience loving actress had something simple but classy ready to go. It appears to be a basic black wrap dress, and I have to say, I think Max Black would totally approve of dressing up any outfit from a discount retailer like Loehmann’s (which closed all locations in 2014). Behrs, who’ll end her time on The Neighborhood along with her co-stars when Season 8 finishes up, also had a note to share about her look for the same evening, and added:

Man! Every now and then we tell on ourselves, and I think Behrs did that here. I wouldn’t have given a second thought to her hair, but after reading that she thinks it looks wiggy, I gotta admit…she’s not wrong! If anything, this just proves that we are all capable of putting together great looks on the fly, but there’s nothing wrong if we happen to make a misstep or two when going out on the town.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is always expanding, thanks to new projects arriving in theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. Fans who spent years watching the Marvel movies in order are constantly looking to clues about upcoming Marvel movies, especially the next two Avengers titles. Darcy Lewis actress Kat Dennings recently posed with Cap's shield, and her caption is seriously spot on.

What we know about Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars is limited, and fans are curious about which surprise characters might pop up. So when Dennings' Instagram showed her with Captain America's shield, it had the potential to start fan theories about her character. But she seemingly shut that down with the caption, check it out below:

Womp womp. It sounds like he probably shouldn't expect Darcy to pop up in the MCU anytime soon. But to be fair, fans simply might not believe her. After all, Andrew Garfield lied for years about his return as Spider-Man in No Way Home. So smart money says that there are corners of the fandom who will be holding out hope for Dennings' return to to the MCU in live-action.

Of course, part of the ongoing excitement about Dennings is likely because of the wild way Darcy recently popped up in the MCU. After her cameo in Thor: Love and Thunder, Darcy her own wild episode of What If...? The animated series saw her marry Howard the Duck and even have a superpowered child. So Dennings' return as Darcy doesn't feel totally out of the question.

Kat Dennings made her MCU debut in the original Thor movie, long before the shared universe became a global sensation. Since then she's returned in a number of other projects like Thor: The Dark World, WandaVision, Thor: Love & Thunder, and What If...?. The latter offered her most bonkers adventure yet, and fans are eager to see if Darcy and Howard the Duck's relationship gets to make its way to live-action.

Overall, fans are curious about how the Thor franchise will continue in the MCU. While Ragnarok was a huge hit, Love and Thunder was a critical disappointment. It also marked the first time a hero was given a fourth solo movie. Chris Hemsworth was confirmed to be reprising his role during Avengers: Doomsday's live stream casting announcement, although fans are wondering if the God of Thunder might be in danger of being killed off. After all, we've seen OG Avengers like Black Widow and Iron Man fall in previous installments.

Avengers: Doomsday will hit theaters on December 18, 2026, but first up is The Fantastic Four: First Steps on July 25th as part of the 2025 movie release list. Only time will tell if/when Darcy pops back up.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has gotten so big at this point that it’s perfectly understandable if viewers are getting a little confused about who is in it and what roles they are playing. However, it’s quite another thing when the franchise is apparently so big that even the actors in the MCU are forgetting that they are part of it. First, Gwyneth Paltrow forgot what movies she made, and now we learn Kat Dennings forgot she was even in the franchise until a recent trip to Disneyland.

Kat Dennings is, of course, Darcy Lewis, one of the greatest sidekicks in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. First introduced in Thor, she has appeared in several MCU films and TV series, both live-action and animated. One would think she would have felt like she was “coming home” during a trip to Disneyland Resort, walking through Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure. And yet, she apparently didn’t realize at first why so many people were making such a big deal about her. She posted to Threads…

In a follow-up repost on Instagram, she asked the question, “am I ok?” and I have to say it is a little wild that Dennings forgot her connection to Marvel while walking through the franchise’s theme park land. Maybe Thor wasn’t out visiting with guests at that particular moment. If he had been, she might have remembered her connection to the franchise. Apparently Dennings didn't get the Cate Blanchett Disneyland experience.

Clearly, what this means is that Darcy Lewis hasn’t been in the MCU enough, and we need to get that fixed ASAP. To be fair, she hasn’t been seen in live-action since a brief appearance in Thor: Love and Thunder. Her only appearances since then were in voicing her character in the animated series What If…?

While Kat Dennings may not have remembered her connection to the MCU, the crowd at Disney California Adventure clearly did. Being an MCU fan and actually seeing Darcy Lewis there had to be pretty cool for them. It’s one thing to wander through the land and walk by Black Widow or Ant-Man. If you’re lucky, the park may have a rare character appearance that day. But how many people get to see Darcy?

Honestly, I love this idea, and now I want to see more of it. There are dozens of MCU heroes, and even some villains, who you’ll see wandering through Avengers Campus on any given day, but there are even more small supporting characters that a lot of fans love that it would be great to see as well.

Avengers Campus is going through a major upgrade right now, with two new attractions coming to the park. One of them will include a multiverse of different heroes appearing in the story. Surely, there's a place for Darcy Lewis somewhere.

For all that linear TV ratings have gradually dropped from year to year in the streaming era, the 2025 TV schedule is currently filled with more hits than one might imagine, especially when it comes to delayed-viewing windows that account for repeats and DVR. For instance, Kaitlin Olson's ABC dramedy High Potential hit double-digit stats enough with its early episodes to earn a renewal order before that twisty Season 1 finale aired. So what about the network's other massive freshman series, Shifting Gears?

Boasting some major TV star power in Tim Allen, Kat Dennings, Seann William Scott and later additions like Jenna Elfman, Shifting Gears came out of the gate extremely strong, and I predicted that it would very quickly get renewal news from ABC, but the network has remained mum on that topic ever since. And it appears as if those initially promising ratings are a big factor.

Shifting Gears Is Reportedly On The Cancellation Bubble Due To Its Major Decline In Viewership Stats

Shifting Gears sped onto ABC's schedule in January 2025 like one of Tim Allens' sports cars, and it amassed a same-day audience of 6.1 million viewers, which is unheard of for the majority of network comedies at this point. And when delayed totals were tallied, the debut ep was watched by more than 17 million people across ABC, Hulu, Disney+ and VOD. It's a wonder the renewal wasn't ordered right then.

Unfortunately, none of the follow-up episodes came close to reaching that massive ceiling, and Shifting Gears' cliffhanger finale was watched by just 3.8 million on the night it aired. Which, given the scope of post-pandemic scripted television, isn't necessarily the biggest or most harrowing drop in audience members, at least for most shows. But for one that boasts Tim Allen as its star? No drop is a good drop, and Deadline reports that the sitcom's dip in ratings extended to its streaming numbers.

It'd be one thing if the car-speckled sitcom put forth a traditional season of 20+ episodes that stretched from September to May, with various holiday hiatuses breaking up the flow. However, Shifting Gears' freshman season only netted a ten-episode order, and there was only a single one-week break between the sixth and seventh episodes.

It's Also Costly For A 30-Minute Sitcom

For many years, network execs could rely on sitcoms to be fairly inexpensive, sticking largely to pre-built sets and without the need to film on location very much. And while that's technically also the case with Shifting Gears, it does have a unique price point that most other shows don't: Tim Allen.

As Allen's first return to live studio audiences after the (second) cancellation of Last Man Standing's producers no doubt lined up a very lucrative deal for the actor that would likely be harder to commit to year after year, especially if the idea would be that he'd get even more money after a certain point.

Not to mention the fact that Kat Dennings, Seann William Scott and Chill Mitchell are also highly regarded in the medium. (To say nothing about how much money is spent on all the cars in Matt's shop, money that goes right to Allen himself.)

However, ABC's Lack Of New Shows And Existing Comedies Could Help Save Shifting Gears From Cancellation

For all the negative-sounding details that seem to point to Shifting Gears getting driven out to pasture without following up on Matt's burgeoning romance with Elfman's Eve, there exists a silver lining of sorts: ABC's scripted lineup is dwindling, and is seemingly without a ton of in-development projects that appear destined to hit small screen in the near future.

With The Conners in the midst of its six-episode final season, Abbott Elementary will rank as the network's only half-hour comedy, which seems ludicrous for a broadcast channel that used to host TGIF's classic sitcom block. And the only new series that's formally in the works behind the scenes is the upcoming spinoff 9-1-1: Nashville.

In fact, ABC currently has the fewest number of scripted shows airing in primetime, with just 9, compared to CBS (18), NBC (15) and Fox (16). It's wild that Fox is winning out in those totals, since it only airs two hours of primetime programming compared to three on the other networks. Granted, it can easily rely on Bachelor Nation series, American Idol, Celebrity Jeopardy! and more without the need for multicam sitcoms, but still.

The final element leaning in the comedy's favor is that it was set up as a midseason debut, which traditionally don't debut quite as successfully as those arriving in the fall. So there's potentially an understanding amongst execs that its chances could improve with a timeslot change and an earlier premiere date.

But as it goes whenever fans are waiting to hear renewal and cancellation updates, we won't truly know anything until ABC makes an official call behind the scenes. So stay patient, and nab a Hulu subscription to stream the first season in full.

Shifting Gears closed out Season 1 with a shocking kiss and many questions, but fans are still waiting to see if ABC will renew the sitcom for another season. The good news is that all the episodes are up to stream for those with a Hulu subscription, and I would recommend a rewatch, especially after hearing Kat Dennings talk about meeting Tim Allen for the first time.

Dennings spoke at length about her co-star in a few interviews recently and was very honest about working with the veteran actor. It's interesting to see what the former 2 Broke Girls star had to say about stepping into a sitcom with Tim Allen, and I'm pleased to report that her thoughts were largely positive.

Kat Dennings Opened Up About Meeting Tim Allen For The First Time

Shifting Gears has a solid number of fans, thanks to its nostalgic sitcom feel and the dynamic of Kat Dennings' Riley and Tim Allen's Matt. It would be a shame to hear they don't get along so well when the cameras aren't rolling, but fortunately, the actresses' comments to Deadline about meeting him for the first time make it sound like they became fast friends:

Hearing how much of the crew has followed Tim Allen in his career has me thinking that the Home Improvement reference Shifting Gears recently made was more for them than it was for the fans. It's impressive to hear he's amassed such loyalty in Hollywood, and now I'm beginning to wonder what other actors in the business have gained that following.

Kat Dennings added that Allen's following isn't limited to his cast and crew either, the fans show up in the live studio audience. She said the tapings of episodes were unlike anything she'd experienced before, even on 2 Broke Girls:

I'm not sure if that says more about Shifting Gears or 2 Broke Girls, but I'm glad to hear the audience is hyping up the stars of the ABC sitcom. Hopefully, that means a renewal for Season 2 isn't too far off, and the showrunner's recent thoughts on that happening sound promising.

Kat Dennings On Why Tim Allen Is So Great To Work With

Kat Dennings also sang Tim Allen's praises on Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce, where she discussed playing a television mom for the first time. She talked about the dynamic of Riley and Matt always getting into politics and other relevant and sensitive issues and how challenging that can be. Fortunately, she said she has a great partner in her co-star, who she credited as being a great actor:

It's easy to believe this, as CinemaBlend wrote about how the show nailed Tim Allen's character. Writing can only go so far, however, and it takes a talented actor to bring the words on the page to life. So far, he's done a great job, but what else should we expect, given his past success in primetime television?

As mentioned, Shifting Gears Season 1 is over at ABC, but the entire season is up on Hulu right now. We'll continue to wait for updates on whether it'll return on the 2025 TV schedule for Season 2 and follow up on those shocking moments we saw in the season finale.

Mild spoilers below for anyone who hasn't yet watched Shifting Gears' Season 1 finale on ABC or streaming with a Hulu subscription.

Already one of the most popular shows to debut on the 2025 TV schedule, the ABC sitcom Shifting Gears easily proved Tim Allen and Kat Dennings’ combined value as a daddy-daughter sitcom pairing. Millions upon millions of viewers have turned in each week, and many of them are already likely expecting to see a follow-up to Matt and Riley’s unexpected complications seen in the finale. But Season 2 hasn’t actually been ordered yet.

I personally expected Shifting Gears to get renewed soon after High Potential and Abbott Elementary’s next seasons were confirmed. However, ABC execs still haven’t made the call, and that lack of an update has sparked differing reactions from co-lead Dennings and the sitcom’s showrunner.

Kat Dennings Is Inherently Pessimistic, But Hopeful For Season 2

Having previously starred in 2 Broke Girls, which was infamously canceled by CBS without giving fans closure on its cliffhanger finale, Kat Dennings knows that guarantees aren't always an option in Hollywood, and is thus keeping a practical mind about Shifting Gears' future. That said, when asked by Deadline about not getting renewed for Season 2 yet, she did point to the sitcom's ratings and general good word-of-mouth as reasons to remain hopeful. (Or at least for others to.) In her words:

It has to be strange to be on one of the biggest and most prominent TV networks in the country, drawing a massive audience at a time when linear TV numbers are as low as ever, and still have to use phrases like "pins and needles" to talk about waiting for renewal news. All while other networks, studios and streaming platforms are putting in renewals for projects that may never reach a lifetime viewership that matches what a single episode of Shifting Gears brings in across ABC and Hulu.

Of course, TV renewals aren't always just about popularity. Tim Allen is a huge TV star who likely earns a rather large per-episode paycheck for his latest sitcom, and it's not like he's the only big name on there. Plus, it's possible that he and certain other cast and crew members may have other commitments that complicate the scheduling process, and would need to be ironed out before season orders are made. In any case, the showrunner definitely sounds more optimistic...

Shifting Gears' Showrunner Sounds More Confident About A Renewal

For all that Kat Dennings wisely played it cool and coy about the comedy's future, showrunner Michelle Nader spoke far more confidently about what she would like to see playing out in a follow-up season, and I'm almost convinced that she got some casual assurances from network execs about what's happening behind closed doors.

When asked by TVLine about Lucas Neff's Jimmy popping up for some big updates in the finale, Nader shared her hopes for how that character could be used in the future, saying:

For what it's worth, we won't be very happy if RIley and Jimmy reconcile things so quickly, since this entire first season has been about her learning how to navigate her and her kids' lives without him. That said, I'm all about the comedic complications that will arise from Jimmy being around and NOT being able to romance Riley as much as he'd like.

And that's not the only character Michelle Nader would like to explore in Season 2, should it happen. The sitcom boss was also asked about references made to Matt's other child, Sam, and whether or not fans might see Riley sharing the screen with her brother down the line. As Nader put it:

It sounds like Shifting Gears' head honcho is as ready as can be to start crafting new storylines for these beloved characters, if only someone out there would make the call to confirm Season 2 is happening.

Not that I know if I can even withstand a reality where Tim Allen and Jenna Elfman are playing sitcom love interests without the '90s-fixated part of my brain collapsing in on itself like a black hole. But I'll be willing to try, so get on it, ABC.

Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Shifting Gears Season 1 finale "Kiss." Stream it with a Hulu subscription and read at your own risk!

Tim Allen and Kat Dennings' Shifting Gears closed out Season 1 on ABC with quite a shocking moment that I definitely didn't see coming. While we've applauded the series for its nostalgic sitcom feel harkening back to the 90s, this latest twist in the finale was far less predictable, and I'm actually grateful "Kiss" didn't play out the way I expected it to.

The season finale began with Riley's soon-to-be ex-husband Matt telling her he got a new gig as the Foo Fighters bassist, and that he wants to get the family back together. Riley was then forced to go back and forth on whether she wanted to call off the divorce and start over fresh, or stick with what's currently working.

She ultimately made the decision I'd previously hoped for, and I was extra relieved one other moment I was expecting didn't play out. Before getting to that, though, let's talk about what caught me completely off-guard.

Matt And Eve Kissed, And They Might Be A Romantic Item

Just as Riley's divorce party was shutting down, Matt apologized to Eve for overreacting about her dinging his car door. He agreed to pay the damages but didn't apologize. Eve did her recurring thing, where she said she knew that was his way of apologizing even if he wouldn't say it he was doing. In an unexpected moment after, she kissed Matt on the lips, and while that was all the Shifting Gears audience saw, Tim Allen's character implied before the ending credits that things went a lot further than that.

It wasn't that long ago I applauded the ABC sitcom for its restraint in not making Matt and Charlotte (played by Last Man Standing star Nancy Travis) a couple. Now we have Jenna Elfman's Eve potentially entering a romance with Matt, which is the last thing I saw coming. At least, not this soon, but now I feel grateful Jenna Elfman picked up the phone when Shifting Gears called. I'm excited to see where this relationship may head in future episodes, assuming the series returns for Season 2.

I'm Glad Gabe Didn't Kiss Riley When She Tried For It

I've long said Shifting Gears is one of the most surprising entries on 2025 TV schedule, and the subversion of expectations in the Season 1 finale solidified that for me. When Gabe offered to take Riley home after she partied a little too hard at her divorce party, I felt I saw what was going to happen from a mile away. Then, Riley went in for the kiss, and surprisingly, Gabe backed off.

While I think it's inevitable that Gabe and Riley will date, I do agree they shouldn't have pulled the trigger on it immediately after her deciding to move forward with her divorce. We need some time to let the storyline breathe and for their relationship to develop naturally, and I think Shifting Gears will do that should it return for more episodes on ABC. Critics were all over the place with the show, though we at CinemaBlend think it's worthy of renewal. Time will tell!

All of Shifting Gears Season 1 is now available to stream on Hulu. Check out the series and keep an eye out for news on Season 2, and stick with CinemaBlend as we track all the new and returning shows coming out throughout 2025.

Shifting Gears has been one of the best shows on the 2025 TV schedule, and it's not just because Tim Allen has a knack for doing sitcoms. Kat Dennings is also crushing it in her role as Riley, a newly-divorced mother just trying to do the best for her kids. Playing a parent is a first for the actress, and Dennings recently revealed she was a bit iffy about taking on this new role in her career.

Those who haven't had a chance to catch the ABC sitcom should make use of their Hulu subscriptions and catch up, as Dennings is great in her return to network television. The actress was a guest recently on Not Gonna Lie With Kylie Kelce, and talked about why she initially thought it was wild to play a mom in a Hollywood role:

Much like Tim Allen dove into his personal experience with grief in Shifting Gears, Kat Dennings is able to lean into her life as well. While Riley has a lot on her plate in the sitcom that we hope she'll figure out, she seems to navigate the whole mom thing pretty well.

The actress talked about her personal journey as a mom with her husband and party rocker Andrew W.K., to whom she became engaged in 2021. She talked about her experience as a mom through her marriage with him, as well as other children she's acted as a mother to over the years:

Not only is Kat Dennings playing a parent, Riley is also juggling reconnecting with her father, from whom she's been estranged for years. The series has a real 90s sitcom feel in addressing and tackling various issues, and I don't say that as a bad thing. Hell, it seems like the series intentionally strives to be that, especially after Jay Leno appeared in an episode and referred to Home Improvement.

Of course, Shifting Gears also references Tim Allen's previous ABC sitcom Last Man Standing, which was canceled and ended its run on Fox. With Kat Dennings back on network television, I know there are hopes people will see her reunite with her former 2 Broke Girls co-star Beth Behrs. Maybe now that The Neighborhood is ending on CBS, she'll get a chance to team-up with Dennings again?

We'll have to wait until Season 2 to see if that happens, because Season 1 of Shifting Gears draws to a close on ABC on Wednesday, March 19 at 8:00 p.m. ET. Here's hoping for a surprise before the season signs off, and given the surprises we've seen with guest stars this season, I wouldn't rule it out.

I watch a lot of television. I could argue with a straight face that it’s for my job, but really, deep down, I kinda just love watching TV. I’d probably be consuming almost as much if I worked some other random job. It’s not confined to any specific genre either. Detective shows, prestige dramas, professional wrestling, reality competitions, sports, edgy comedies, Hallmark romances, game shows, it’s all on my DVR, and the thing is, I watch them all for different reasons. Like, for example, Shifting Gears, which I love because it feels like a TV show created and executed by sitcom veterans who time-traveled from the year 1994.

I was attempting to explain this to one of my friends a few weeks ago, and he legitimately thought I was trying to roast Tim Allen or mock Shifting Gears. I wasn’t. Last week, I tried to express the same opinion to a different friend, and she asked why I would consider “feeling dated” to be a positive quality. I don’t. That’s not what I was trying to say or what I think.

I’m not watching Shifting Gears because of some hipster irony thing or because I just can’t believe a show like this exists in 2025. I’m watching it because it makes me feel the same way watching a sitcom in 1994 made me feel, and there aren’t many shows on television trying to hit those emotional beats anymore. It’s simply a family sitcom that works for some of the same reasons many classic family sitcoms from the early 1990s worked.

That starts with the tone. Shifting Gears is about an estranged father and daughter, played by Tim Allen and Kat Dennings, who reconnect after the mom passes and the daughter’s marriage falls apart. She moves back in alongside her two kids, and they’re all forced to adjust to their new reality in a multi-generational household filled with different personalities and opposing worldviews. The show tackles all the issues you’d expect, but it does so with honest, yet superficial sincerity.

Not every show needs gritty realism. In fact, an overwhelming majority of television shows going for gritty realism suck at it and are far worse off for trying. Shifting Gears doesn’t try. Instead, it finds that 90s sweet spot where it’s honest enough to acknowledge and address serious and sometimes sad issues, but it doesn’t dwell on them or try to investigate them from every angle. It has the characters talk about them, connect in a heartfelt way, offer some common sense advice and then move on with a joke or two.

That’s why Shifting Gears can give us an episode where the A-plot is about a neighboring business putting a picnic bench in the alley and another episode where the A-plot is about Kat Dennings’ estranged husband coming back into the picture to reconnect with his kids, and it still feels like the same show working within the same emotional spectrum. In the latter, we get to see Tim Allen deliver a speech to his son-in-law about how he needs to step up as a father and as a man, but it’s peppered with just enough jokes and it’s taken well enough by the son-in-law that it doesn’t feel too heavy. And that’s what I want out of this show.

I also want consistent humor, and Shifting Gears is consistently pretty funny. I say pretty funny because it’s not hitting me with jokes that I want to immediately text to my wife, but it’s clever and amusing enough that I have a half-smile on my face throughout like 2/3rds of every episode. When there’s not one of those more serious plots I outlined above, much of the humor is about lower stake things like food or generational stereotypes or how the world is changing, but once again, that’s what I’m looking for out of this show.

I’m also looking for a lot of Tim Allen and Kat Dennings, which the show has no problem giving. Allen as the curmudgeonly dad that means well despite his attitude and Dennings as the snarky, alternative daughter with a sharp tongue is a great formula. Those two are among the best versions of those archetypes you can cast, and the show understands that. Almost every episode is written with several extended scenes where they’re able to play off one another, and they always squeeze the most out of the material.

You could say the same thing about the rest of the cast too. Shifting Gears is quite clearly Tim Allen’s show with Kat Dennings as the co-main character and primary foil, but the rest of the supporting cast is really well chosen too. Both of the kids are better than your average sitcom child actors and have some real personality to their roles, and the other recurrings are, like Allen and Dennings, among the best versions of people who play those types of roles.

Sean William Scott has made a career out of playing the friend who’s funny but kind of a jerk but also has some layers you don’t expect. He’s cast here as Tim Allen’s number two at work and maybe a possible love interest for Dennings and is obviously fantastic. He’s joined by Daryl Mitchell, who plays another dude at work who just fires off one-liners. You might remember him as the teacher from 10 Things I Hate About You, and if you remember that thing, I don’t need to tell you he’s perfect for this. Jenna Elfman is also recurring as a neighbor and competing business owner who’s an arch-nemesis but also maybe a love interest for Allen. As a Dharma and Greg fan, I’m into that. Even guest stars have been perfectly chosen too.

Long story short, I love Shifting Gears. It’s not a show I obsess about between episodes, but it is one that delivers exactly what I expect every single time I put it on. Unfortunately, that’s increasingly rare. We’re living in an age where a really high percentage of TV shows seem to have no idea what they’re good at or why people are watching them. Way too many of them think they need to be as serious or as deep as possible in order to improve themselves. That’s great for the a dozen or so things on television that are brilliant and innovative and have unique things to say, but for the rest of them, it’s often an annoying detour.

Shifting Gears would have crushed in 1994, even when there were 15 other shows on network TV trying to do exactly this. It’s currently crushing in 2025 when there's only a couple others, and if you put it into a time capsule and launch into the future, it’ll crush in 2056 when there might not be any. The awkward family dynamics sitcom filled with generational humor and well-intentioned misunderstandings just works. It might not be the coolest elevator pitch to a TV executive trying to win Emmys, but it’s a formula many of us relate to and find comfort in watching. Shifting Gears is just about the best version of that formula you’ll ever find, and that is not an insult. It's simply an observation and a reason why I watch it and love it every single week.

TV co-stars' chemistry can sometimes be an overlooked strength, especially when it comes to sitcoms. The best examples are evidenced by many years spent making audiences crack up, while the worst... well, those are better left ignored. Thankfully, comedy vets Tim Allen and Kat Dennings continue to bring their splendid on-screen relationship to the 2025 TV schedule in ABC's Shifting Gears, and their back-and-forth dynamic is just as enjoyable behind the scenes.

I'm a bit shocked that Shifting Gears hasn't scored a Season 2 renewal yet after fellow network favorites High Potential and Abbott Elementary landed new seasons, but I'll just assume the big bosses are trying to figure out just how many dozens of extra episodes to add to the order. In the meantime, ABC shared a fun video on Instagram that highlights just how easy-breezy-lemon-squeezey Allen and Dennings are in real life.

The vid's theme covers a variety of elements that both co-stars love about working on Shifting Gears, and as it turns out, the Home Improvement vet does indeed enjoy sharing the screen with the occasional MCU star. Here's one exchange:

• TIM ALLEN: I like working with her. It makes it fun.
• KAT DENNINGS: Did you hear that? America, he likes working with me!
• TIM ALLEN: It’s just fun. It’s like a chip off the old block as an actor. The guy I’m playing, it does seem… When she does stuff, they even said, it looks like a female version of me. It’s kind of creepy.
• KAT DENNINGS: It's true.

Kat Dennings may not be known for her oddball method acting behavior before and during projects, but she must have some of that natural talent if she's already being pegged as having the same physical movements as Tim Allen. It's when she starts grunting at everything and adding vintage car decorations all over the place that someone might need to start worrying.

Speaking of physical noises that aren't applicable substitutes for traditional language, Dennings shared that Allen is apparently always making audible noises on the set before filming begins, though this noise sounds slightly more downbeat and frustrated than his stand-up-friendly grunts.

• KAT DENNINGS: I want people to know that every five minutes, Tim makes this noise: ‘Eughhh.’ Off-camera. It’s happening before every scene. And I want the audience to know.
• TIM ALLEN: I can’t stop myself, and I don’t like it.
• KAT DENNINGS: I like it. I think you do like it.
• TIM ALLEN: I’m tired of it. I’m tired of myself. I actually say to myself, "Stop doing that."
• KAT DENNINGS: But now I’m doing it.

She just can't stop sharing similarities with her fictional father! It seems like Dennings and Allen are already so close that we can expect to see her reuniting with him in a decade on whatever sitcom he stars in next. After all, Shifting Gears fans have already seen him paired back up with Last Man Standing co-star Nancy Travis for a Valentine's Day ep (which thankfully didn't get romantic), and we know that Jay Leno will soon guest-star as well.

Another thing they both love about starring in Shifting Gears is playing the stories out in front of a live audience, which they're quick to say is NOT a laugh track. And Dennings pointed out that the live crowd is far more boisterous than any recorded chortles would be, because they're all amped up by watching Tim Allen in his natural element, even if he's too humble to admit it.

• KAT DENNINGS: When Tim makes a joke, sometimes the audience is screaming, like…
• TIM ALLEN: "Get out!" [Laughs.] "We didn’t pay to see you do your stupid bits!"
• KAT DENNINGS: No, they’re scream-laughing so much, as if they’re seeing — which they are — their favorite basketball player.

Viewers never have long to wait for new episodes of Shifting Gears, which airs on ABC every Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m., and streams the next day with a Hulu subscription.

Shifting Gears is taking a break this week, but don't worry; it'll be back on the 2025 TV schedule soon. This week presents the perfect opportunity to catch up on previous episodes with a Hulu subscription, or if you're all current like me, to think about the story so far. I've grown quite attached to Kat Dennings' Riley, and had to share my hopes for her story.

Dennings is loving her return to comedy sitcoms, and I'm not surprised, given how much she has to work with when it comes to Riley. The character is going through a lot amidst a divorce, moving back in with her estranged father, and getting her children settled in a new city, but she does her best to keep it all moving. With that said, I can see her story moving in a few different directions and had to express my hopes for her character for future episodes.

I Hope Riley Doesn't Get Back Together With Jimmy

With Riley facing many new struggles in moving in with her father, Matt (Tim Allen), I wonder if she'll feel tempted to reconcile with her ex-husband, Jimmy (Lucas Neff). In Jimmy's one appearance so far, we've seen him eager to get back together with Riley and return to being a rockstar with his family on the road.

While Riley is adamant that leaving Jimmy is the best decision, she struggles in her new life at Shifting Gears. I hope I'm wrong, but I feel she could feel compelled to try to return to a life she was once comfortable with, if only for a little while.

I'm Also Hopeful Riley Steers Clear Of Seann William Scott's Gabriel

Tim Allen's return to primetime television has many of the classic tropes of a sitcom, including a "will they, won't they" storyline between Kat Dennings' Riley and Seann William Scott's Gabriel. Shifting Gears seems intent on teasing a romance between these two. Right now, it feels like that's far away from happening, and if I'm being honest, I'm not sure I want to see that.

I'd much prefer Riley and Gabe being best buddies who can confide in each other at work. Maybe I'll have a change of heart as the season goes on and new details arise, but probably not.

I Really Hope Riley Can Overcome Her Insecurities About Starting Over In Life

I hated seeing how upset Riley was when meeting up with her old friend Caitlyn (Brenda Song), and ultimately leaving dinner because of her insecurities about starting over in life. Anyone who has had to "reboot" their life in their 30s can attest to this, and the sensitivity they may have to others whilst going through it. It's not easy, but even with all that's going against her, Riley is not a failure.

While Riley is going through some hard times, she's picking up the pieces and ultimately getting her life together to set up a future for herself and her children. Add all that on top of the fact that she's navigating reuniting with her father after years of estrangement and coping with the death of her mother and man; she's going through a lot.

Overall, I'm very excited to see more of Riley on Shifting Gears, and given Tim Allen and Kat Dennings' funny responses to the #1 new comedy news, I think we'll see her character undergo many changes. Here's hoping all her future decisions are for the best, though given how sitcoms usually go, I have a feeling she'll have a few missteps along the way. I can't help but think she may try to go back to her ex-husband despite her insistence that the marriage is over.

Shifting Gears returns to ABC with a new episode on Wednesday, February 26th at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm eager to see the rest of Season 1, and I'm crossing my fingers for more scenes of Kat Dennings dancing after that hilarious moment in a recent episode.

Tim Allen’s new show Shifting Gears has been making headlines after hitting the 2025 TV schedule thanks to its solid cast and a premise the actor has described as hitting “much closer” to home. However, because I’ve been covering news about the show recently, I wanted to give it a chance, and I was pleased to find out there’s one aspect of Allen’s new character on the show that fits him perfectly.

One thing you need to know about Shifting Gears even if you haven’t seen an episode yet is the longtime comedian owns an auto body shop that specializes in restoring and doing work on classic cars. Tim Allen told CinemaBlend about some of his own cars actually being used on the show, but one thing I like about the No. 1 new comedy on TV this season is how well Matt’s taste translates from his work into his home.

While watching the series for the first time, I noticed the house set on Shifting Gears is pretty simple and mostly focuses on a couple of rooms: the kitchen that looks out into the backyard and a living room. In both, we see Matt’s love of everything vintage in the appliance choices and so much more.

There are vintage or vintage-y set pieces shown throughout the house and not just the body shop, with my favorite piece being the fridge in the kitchen. I did a little sleuthing and the Parker family purchased a bright blue Big Chill fridge that I would absolutely adore in my own home. But even if you aren't looking for a big blue fridge, there are some other super cute mini options, as well.

I dunno who the show hired for set design (the credits tell me it’s Jerie Kelter), but kudos to whomever was responsible for the decision to bleed retro into Matt's home. Touches like the colorful camper out back also really work for the character. Matt's a widower, but details like these make the space feel like his home too and not simply a space designed by his late wife, though her echoes are also really important in the sitcom’s first episodes.

I’ve previously been a casual Tim Allen viewer. In fact, I used to throw on Last Man Standing sometimes when I worked as a nanny and the kids would go to bed, but I’m especially liking the verbal rapport Allen has with longtime sitcom veteran Kat Dennings this time around, and I think it will be enough for me to latch onto this series on a more regular basis. The two are a match made in live studio audience laugh heaven, and while the show may feel like a throwback in a lot of ways, it’s a vibe that’s really working for it. I think it has these vintage details to thank.

If you haven't give it a watch yet, you're in luck. New episodes air on Wednesdays.

Steve Carell's list of best movies and TV shows is extremely impressive, and it includes both The Office and The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Notably, both those projects that helped define his career premiered in 2005. Now, Kat Dennings, who stared alongside him in the Judd Apatow film, opened up about the nervous energy he had while working on the movie because he had just finished filming the iconic NBC pilot.

While Dennings chatted about Hollywood Dads with People -- seeing as Carell played her step-father in The 4o-Year-Old Virgin and Tim Allen plays her father in her new sitcom on the 2025 TV schedule called Shifting Gears -- she had the following to say about Steve Carell and his "anxious energy" on set:

The Office actor’s work has proved time and time again that he’s one of the funniest. In fact, his NBC comedy is one of the best sitcoms of all time and The 40-Year-Old Virgin is bookmarked as one of the best movies of the 2000s. So, it's surreal to hear the anecdote about his nervous energy over them from Dennings. However, it also makes sense, considering this was a major turning point, and booking and maintaining a network sitcom is a very, very big deal.

As I mentioned, both the aforementioned show and movie were huge hits overall and catapulted Carell to stardom. From there he expanded into indie classics like Little Miss Sunshine, explored various animated worlds a la Horton Hears a Who! and expanded into meatier more dramatic roles in films like Foxcatcher. All the while he continued to carve out a rightful place in the comedy genre that expands well past Michael Scott.

I think that many of us could tell he was here to stay after almost losing a nipple during the infamous 'Kelly Clarkson!' moment in 40-Year-Old -- and hopefully, Carell realized after filming this killer scene, too.

Dennings, too has seen plenty of success after working on that Judd Apatow-directed movie. The House Bunny alum has been no stranger to the big screen with hitsThor and more. Her television work--animated and not--is just as notable, with the height being her time on 2 Broke Girls. Now, she's landed back on the small screen in Shifting Gears alongside Tim Allen. The new gig seems even more exciting to Dennings with her sharing that she's feeling more confident in front of a live audience this time around.

Clearly, both of them have carved out impressive paths, and there's no anxiety needed. It's also good to know that Carell, and Dennings for that matter, aren't feeling the ‘anxious energy’ on such a grand scale anymore. And both of them know that The Office and The 40-Year-Old Virgin fill out some of the comedian’s brightest spots of work.

To see said work, you can stream The Office with a Peacock subscription and The 40-Year-Old Virgin is available to watch through VOD services. To see what Dennings is up to now, you can watch Shifting Gears on Wednesday nights on ABC or the next day with a Hulu subscription.

Hollywood lost a true legend today, as it was announced that David Lynch had died at the age of 78. The experimental and incredibly creative filmmaker was deeply beloved, and his films and shows have influenced so many over the decades. Now, as we mourn this loss, Steven Spielberg, Kyle MacLachlan, Nicolas Cage and more are posting their tributes to the director and honoring the impact he left on film and television.

Both Steven Spielberg and David Lynch are legendary filmmakers, and the Jaws director admires the Twin Peaks creator greatly. In fact, he cast Lynch as John Ford in The Fabelmans back in 2022. In a statement published Variety, Spielberg noted that role and his relationship with the director, saying:

Like Spielberg, Nicolas Cage honored the late filmmaker with a statement about how brilliant he was. The actor worked with Lynch on the 1990 movie Wild at Heart, and in a statement published by Deadline, he called the director a “singular genius in cinema.” Also referring to Lynch as “one of the greatest artists of this or any time,” Cage explained:

Along with Cage, Kyle MacLachlan shared kind words about his frequent collaborator. Posting a series of images that seemingly span across decades, the actor reflected on his decades-long relationship with Lynch in a long Instagram post. The two worked together on the 1984 underappreciated adaptation of Dune, one of the best movies of the ‘80s, Blue Velvet, and one of the best sci-fi shows ever, Twin Peaks.

To commemorate all of that and what the director meant to him, MacLachlan wrote, in part:

Overall, the outpouring of love for Lynch and his filmography has been immense. He made such a big impact and influenced so many filmmakers, and his legacy will live on forever through his work.

An example of that work is Blue Velvet, which James Gunn posted a photo of as he wrote the following tribute to the Eraserhead director on Instagram:

Iconic director and actor Ron Howard noted his love for Lynch too. The Apollo 13 director specifically mentioned the Mulholland Drive director’s love for experimentation, writing the following in a tribute on X:

Ocean’s Eleven director Steven Soderbergh also paid tribute to Lynch by focusing on his “influential but impossible to imitate” work. In an interview with The AP, he complimented the director’s brilliant mind and filmography, writing:

The tributes aren’t even close to stopping there either. Many actors, performers, directors and more took to social media to share their love for David Lynch while grieving his death. Here are some of them:

• "David Lynch, RIP. At least that’s what the horse wearing a fez just told me* in a dream. (*Backwards and in Swedish)" - Patton Oswalt via X
• "This is a monumental loss. One of the most influential artists of all time. Nobody ever did it like David Lynch and nobody ever will again." -Kat Dennings via Instagram
• "Never been so sad about someone I never met I really loved him" -Colin Jost via Instagram
• "Visionary rebel David Lynch died today. His films changed the way many of us see the world. His lens, his choices, and the groundbreaking way he approached film have left an indelible imprint on this world." -Mayim Bialik via Instagram

Overall, the outpouring of love for David Lynch is immense, and there’s no denying just how big of an impact he left on the world of film, television and those who worked with him and loved his work.

We here at CinemaBlend send our condolences and thoughts to Lynch’s loved ones during this difficult time.

Kat Dennings is hardly a sitcom newbie. The long-time Marvel Cinematic Universe star (who’s returned to her role as Darcy Lewis, one of the best minor Marvel characters, many times) spent six seasons playing Max Black on the instantly popular CBS comedy 2 Broke Girls, and has now taken her talents to ABC for the 2025 TV schedule entry, Shifting Gears. And, the star just got real about performing in front of a live audience now, as compared to in her Broke Girls era.

What Did Shifting Gears’ Kat Dennings Say About Performing In Front Of A Live Audience Now?

After wrapping her time on 2 Broke Girls in 2017, Kat Dennings has returned to sitcom star life in Shifting Gears. The WandaVision actress portrays Riley, the daughter of Tim Allen’s character, widowed car restoration specialist Matt. Unfortunately for Riley, when she tires of her husband’s lackadaisical attitude toward their family, she and her two teens have to move back in with Matt, with whom she’s always had a contentious bond.

The comedy sees Dennings return to performing in front of a live sitcom audience every week, and when asked about the experience by Collider, she spoke about how it’s different for her now, versus when she was on her previous, horse-filled show:

As the relatively recently married Dennings noted, when she started on her CBS hit in 2011 she didn’t have any experience working in a studio full of live and in person sitcom fans, so it makes a lot of sense that it would take some getting used to and that it “freaked” her out at the beginning. However, even though it’s been a while since she’s performed this way, she did say that she’s grown to “love” having the audience there, as they “feel almost like another character.”

While she’s having “the most fun ever” performing for the live studio audience, the Thor star did admit that there is a part of the process that’s still a bit nerve-racking for her, and that would be when everyone applauds her entrance. As she said:

Awww. I love that Dennings was willing to open up about what makes her nervous about filming Shifting Gears, but also that she’s able to get past it and help deliver laughs on a regular basis.

Sitcom stars and birthday-sharers Tim Allen and Kat Dennings are currently teamed up for the newest ABC comedy on the 2025 TV schedule, Shifting Gears, with fellow small-screen vets Seann William Scott and Daryl “Chill” Mitchell helping fill out the cast. But it’s perhaps not the human cast members that appeal most to the viewership demographic tuning in to see the Home Improvement alum back in car-restoration mode in primetime. [Grunts similarly to a car’s engine revving up.]

Allen’s Matt Parker owns his own car restoration shop in Shifting Gears — where a poster for the show hangs in the background — and the series premiere doesn’t hold back in showing off some of the vehicles being worked on, as well as the A+ ride (save for all the gunk on it) that Dennings’ Riley pulls up in. When Tim Allen talked to CinemaBlend about his big return to ABC, I asked if any of the cars that appear on the show are his own, and his answer did not disappoint. As he put it:

How cool is that? At least in theory. Not only does Tim Allen get to show off his vast collection of restored classics, but he gets to make a little extra money by renting them off. A total win-win for him, I'd imagine, even if it sounds like a stressful situation to see those projects being dismanted, dirtied, and more for the sake of TV magic.

For instance, the car that Riley and her kids drove up in looked quite rough indeed, but was actually in pristine shape before its on-screen debut. As Allen explained:

What better way for a Tim Allen character to re-forge a bond with his daughter than with a car restoration serving as a metaphor? Which sounds like a joke, but I legitimately can't think of one, unless we're talking about Buzz Lightyear, and I doubt we'll be getting any secret daughter reveals where Toy Story 5's storyline is concerned.

I really can't blame him for sounding sincerely worried after seeing the roughed-up verson of his GTO. And I bet it didn't take nearly as long to mess it up as it did to get it looking perfect to begin with.

Tim Allen talked about a totally different kind of classic ride we'll see on the show, and how all the work he put into was for naught once it was confirmed to appear on Shifting Gears.

No matter how many times he gets reassured that everything will turn out okay, Allen no doubt still makes sure each and every time that nobody makes the mistake of causing any permanent damage to his prized rides. I wonder if it's intimidating at all for the people responsible for faux-damaging the cars.

Tim Allen finished up his vehicular rundown by addressing a project that fans have seen him promoting in the real world, involving the conversion of a 1934 Ford Victoria. In his words:

Hopefully if the new show is big enough to hit a third season, the show will have Matt tackling some pop culture-friendly car restorations, such as the '60s Batmobile or Thomas Magnum's convertible.

While critics weren’t exactly glowing with Shifting Gears praise, that’s par for the course for Allen, whose TV shows and movies tend to succeed regardless of critical opinions. Let's not forget he's one of relatively few celebrities who had the biggest movie (The Santa Clause), the biggest TV show (Home Improvement), and the biggest book (Don't Stand Too Close to a Naked Man) all during the same week.

It’s still too early to tell how well the sitcom will do on ABC’s Wednesday night schedule, but the best way to keep it on the air is to watch new episodes each week either live or with a Hulu subscription.

Tim Allen is returning to television when Shifting Gears hits the 2025 TV schedule, and I couldn’t be more excited. This will mark the actor’s third show on ABC, following Home Improvement and Last Man Standing. Additionally, Allen will be joined by fellow sitcom veteran Kat Dennings, who is playing his daughter, and the Allen himself just clued me in to their weird connection.

Shifting Gears centers on Allen’s Matt Parker, a widow and owner of a classic car restoration shop. His estranged daughter, Riley (Dennings), winds up moving back in with her kids. While Matt and Riley may not be close on the show (yet), Allen told TV Insider about his connection to Dennings IRL, and it’s honestly pretty crazy:

Yes, it’s true. Allen was born on June 13, 1953 while Dennings was born on June 13, 1986. Of course, meeting someone with the same birthday as you is not totally uncommon, but it makes the fact that they’re playing father and daughter all the more fitting. It’s honestly quite a fun coincidence, and I can only imagine how the conversation went when they found this out, whether or not it happened on set.

Already, fans have been seeing what Allen and Dennings’ relationship is like on the small screen. The two gave fans a look at their new comedy for the holidays that not only shows what their chemistry is like off-screen, but it also gave us a good idea about what Matt and Riley are like. There will be a lot to look forward to when Shifting Gears premieres, and the fact the actors are able to play an estranged father and daughter while clearly having a great relationship is proof of just how talented they both are.

Along with Tim Allen and Kat Dennings, Shifting Gears also stars Seann William Scott, Daryl Mitchell, Maxwell Simkins, and Barrett Margolis. Even if none of them share a birthday like their leads, it would be hard for me to believe they won't gave killer chemistry. There’s a reason that Shifting Gears was picked up by ABC, and part of that has to do with the cast making the premise work, regardless of who made the cut from the pilot to the full series.

Meanwhile, Allen’s return to TV makes him “feel like Tom Brady” in that he just can’t stay away from TV. He’ll take a little bit of a break but then come back at full force. While Allen did star in The Santa Clauses that can be streamed with a Disney+ subscription, this will be his first return to network television since Last Man Standing ended in 2021.

It will be an exciting series to watch when it premieres on January 8 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. Even though it’s too early to tell if a second season is possible. Tim Allen and Kat Dennings might celebrate their birthdays on the same day, but they are also bonded for life now.

Part of the fun of watching all the Marvel movies in order is watching the way in which various characters weave in and out of the story. A minor character in one story becomes a key part of the plot in another. Many characters who aren’t the major heroes have become major parts of the MCU in this way and one of the most fun has been Darcy Lewis, one of the best Marvel minor characters, as played by the hilarious Kat Dennings.

Darcy has appeared in most of the Thor movies but has also been part of WandaVision and has voiced Darcy in animated form in What If…?. Speaking with Coillider, Kat Dennings says that she can’t explain why Marvel Studios keeps bringing Darcy back, but she says she loves being part of the MCU so much that she’ll always say yes whenever they ask. She explained…

While humor has always played an important role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Darcy was arguably one of the first characters in the franchise whose purpose was specifically to be comic relief. Darcy always had a sarcastic one-liner at the ready in the original Thor which made her quite different that the god-like title character.

It’s a testament to how much fun Kat Dennings’ character was that she has expended from what was only going to be a couple of scenes to more appearances than many bigger names in the MCU. While she only had a brief appearance in the most recent Thor movie, that came after she wasn’t sure she would be in Thor: Love and Thunder at all.

Darcy’s most significant appearance was in WandaVision, where she played one of the show’s main roles. It was the first Marvel series on Disney+ and is still one of the best. I’m not saying that’s entirely because of Darcy, but she certainly played her part.

And Darcy’s power in the MCU goes beyond simply appearing in shows. Kat Dennings says that the “coolest thing” to happen in her career is the fact that Darcy has been recreated as a LEGO figure. Darcy’s most recent appearance has been in What If…? Season 3. The fourth episode of the series’ final season pairs her up with Howard the Duck, another character who was likely only meant to be a a brief bit of humor, but who has continued to make appearances in the MCU.

When and where we’ll see Darcy Lewis again in any upcoming Marvel movies or series is unclear. The future of the Thor franchise is a big mystery at this point, but we know that Darcy isn’t tied specifically to those films, so she could, and probably will, show up anywhere.

Tim Allen is getting ready for his return to TV with new ABC sitcom Shifting Gears headed to the 2025 TV schedule. The series centers on Allen’s Matt, a stubborn widow and owner of a classic car workshop whose daughter, played by Kat Dennings, has to move back home with her own kids. Considering both Allen and Dennings are comedy geniuses, you just know hilarity will ensue and the actors finally gave fans a good look at their new series with a new clip.

The official Shifting Gears Instagram shared a fun video of Allen and Dennings spreading holiday cheer by telling fans just what to expect with Shifting Gears, along with some clips from the series. From the looks of thing, it really seems like it’s going to be a show you won’t want to miss out on. Honestly, it feels like the perfect, broad comedy people need right now. Take a look:

Not only do their characters seem to have great chemistry, but so do Allen and Dennings, and I desperately can't wait to see more!

Shifting Gears marks Allen’s third comedy for ABC, following Home Improvement and Last Man Standing, both of which ran for pretty long periods (OK, even if the latter did have to switch to Fox). Meanwhile, Dennings’ 2 Broke Girls on CBS was another broad network series that won fans over the years. Put the two actors together and you have Shifting Gears.

This one came together relatively fast, too. It was announced earlier this year that Tim Allen would be starring in a new pilot at ABC, which officially got picked up in July. Although Allen starred in The Santa Clauses, which can be streamed with a Disney+ subscription, Shifting Gears is his first network role since Last Man Standing ended in 2021. The Toy Story actor previously compared his return to Tom Brady, since both of them couldn’t seem to stay away from their respective professions. Funny.

Filming for Shifting Gears kicked off in June for the pilot, leading Allen back to the Disney lot and the Home Improvement stage, which surely brought up a lot of feelings for not only the actor but for fans as well. It will be exciting to see what this new show is all about, especially since the cast attached is pretty great, on top of Allen and Dennings. Former Disney star Brenda Song will be appearing in the show as well, along with Seann William Scott, Daryl Mitchell, Maxwell Simkins, and Barrett Margolis.

Fans still have to wait several more weeks to see Allen and Dennings together, but it will be worth it. Shifting Gears premieres on ABC on Wednesday, January 8 at 8 p.m. ET. There is going to be a lot to look forward to with the new series, and these small clips will be just enough to keep fans excited.

While certain shows coming to the 2025 TV schedule have been in development for years, such as the MCU’s Ironheart and Netflix’s Stranger Things, while others were fully conceived and crafted within the scope of 2024, such as Tim Allen’s big return to primetime. The Last Man Standing vet is back in sitcom mode alongside 2 Broke Girls’ Kat Dennings for ABC’s Shifting Gears, and it looks like we’ll get to enjoy the new premiere long before The Conners will return with its seventh and final season.

Now that ABC has revealed its upcoming midseason schedule, it’s assured we won’t be too waiting long after the new year arrives to see what Allen’s newest TV dad will bring to the table. (Presumably a circular saw of some kind.) However, that other beloved primetime family will be popping up months after the fact, and The Conners technically still doesn’t have a premiere date locked down.

Let’s take a look at the first half of ABC’s upcoming midseason fare below.

Just one week after 2025 arrives in style (hopefully, anyway), fans will meet Tim Allen's widower and classic-car restorer Matt, whose life gets turned upside-down when his daughter (Dennings) shows up with her teenage kids to live with him after her separation. Sounds like pretty traditional sitcom storytelling, and with the additional caveat of filming on the Home Improvement lot.

I'm quite interested to see how Shifting Gears works as a lead-in for Abbott Elementary, and what the viewership numbers will be like in those first few weeks. It's not like ABC has room elsewhere on its schedule for half-hour sitcoms, so if this pairing doesn't work out, I do wonder what the fix would be.

Now let's take alook at the back half of ABC's midseason schedule, which features more streaming-to-broadcast import series from Hulu, following the second season of Only Murders in the Building.

That lineup should be comforting to fans of The Rookie that have been waiting for new episodes for months now. As well as for fans who expected Scamanda to be part of the 2024 Fall TV schedule. But there's that glaring absence to discuss.

Why Isn't The Conners Season 7 On ABC's Schedule?

Despite locking down dates for the majority of its original series (and Hulu shows), ABC still has yet to officially set The Conners' final season start, and it's the only scripted series that's still up in the air. For now, the goal is for it to debut in March 2025.

As such, it sounds like the network is timing things so that the Lanford-set comedy will wrap its historic run during the same May finales window as most other network projects. Here's how the ABC announcement worded it:

• The farewell season of The Conners will return in March 2025. Celebrity Wheel of Fortune and Press Your Luck will also return in the new year. Airdates to be announced at a later date.

The Conners showrunner Bruce Helford and executive producer Dave Caplan talked to CinemaBlend earlier this year about the bigger-than-usual approach to the final episodes, which counterbalances the idea that the new season will be far shorter than usual, with just six episodes.

We'll be waiting patiently to hear more, but in the meantime, I need to perfect my manly grunting in time for Shifting Gears' arrival.

There’s some lovely symmetry to Tim Allen’s career. Once every few years, he signs on for a sitcom that will have him playing some sort of everyman and dad. It will run for many years on whatever network gives it the greenlight, and then Allen will quietly do comedy shows and other work on the side until the next sitcom rolls around, which happened this spring when he filmed the new pilot Shifting Gears. The good news? ABC’s finally signed on to bring the series onto the TV schedule. The bad news? There’s a bit of a behind-the-scenes snag to fix before it moves forward.

When Allen and his newest co-star Kat Dennings signed on for Shifting Gears, they did so with Mike Scully and Julie Thacker Scully, both of The Simpsons fame (though Mike has also worked as co-executive producers and consulting producers on projects like Everybody Loves Raymond and Parks and Recreation.) Both were set to be writers and executive producers on the new ABC series, but this will no longer be the case.

Separately, Variety mentions Froy Gutierrez had also been cast to play a character named Nick in the new series, which will follow Tim Allen as a widower who owns his own body shop. In this sitcom iteration he won’t have kids at home — the actor is 71 at this point – but he will have an adult daughter, played by Kat Dennings. At the start of the show, the two will have been estranged for some time.

Casting changes often happen between pilots and when a show goes to series, as sometimes early screening audiences or the powers that be simply don’t think an actor or character fits as well as they’d imagined in the script. This famously happened on The Big Bang Theory, for example, when Kaley Cuoco replaced another character, Katie, played by Amanda Walsh. So while it’s likely unfortunate for Gutierrez he won’t have a major role moving forward, recastings are common.

Having to find a new showrunner this far in the game is less common. It happens, of course, people have different visions about what a show can be and ultimately the people with the most power prevail. No reason was given for why the sitcom is parting ways with its former writers and producers, but it’s worth pointing out Tim Allen also has an executive producing credit on Shifting Gears and presumably has a lot of say in the direction of the show.

Tim Allen seems pumped about the new series, and had shared pics from set when the pilot was coming together in June. Honestly, I was a little surprised this one didn’t get a greenlight a whole lot faster. It’s not going to be a part of ABC’s fall lineup, and it’s unclear if it will hit this coming TV season at all. Fixing its newfound showrunner problem is likely the first step.

One thing is clear: Tim Allen's still the king of popular '90s shows and this latest network TV return is hotly anticipated, and we’ll keep you posted every step of the way. In the meantime, you can catch the actor's most recent series, The Santa Clauses, with a Disney+ subscription.

Three years after Last Man Standing’s finale reunited Tim Allen and his on-screen daughter Kaitlyn Dever, the stand-up comedian is aiming to return to network TV with a new ABC sitcom. And while Dever will presumably be too busy with The Last of Us Season 2 to pop by the set, Allen will indeed have another TV comedy veteran taking on the role of his character’s contentious and daddy-displeasing offspring.

Former 2 Broke Girls co-star and occasional MCU genius Kat Dennings has been cast in the in-development ABC pilot Shifting Gears for the co-lead daughter role, whose name will be Riley. It sounds like Dennings and Allen will possibly be at odds with one another, at least in the traditional television comedy sense, and I like the idea of the Dollface actress being an aggressive foil for the machismo-driven actor, whose character likely won’t be too far off base from what fans are used to seeing.

Who Is Kat Dennings Playing?

First, it should be noted that Kat Dennings is not only set to co-star in the new pilot, but she’s also set up to take on producer duties. That will presumably give her a bit more of a push to see it come to fruition with a series order. Not that she wouldn’t already by vying for its success anyway.

As far as fictional role specifics go, Dennings was cast in the role of Riley, who was often at odds with Allen’s Mike when she was growing up. She sealed her own fate by leaving home to get married to a boyfriend that certainly did not get Mike’s approval, and they apparently spent years estranged from one another. (Dennings herself tied the knot in December 2023 to musician Andrew W.K..)

When the show picks up, Mike is the widowed owner of a paint-and-body shop that restores classic cars. And he can add “roommate” to that list after Riley makes her way back home with her two teenage kids, having divorced the high school sweetheart. The challenge then becomes trying to build up the loving relationship they never really had before, potentially with different car restorations as episodic metaphors for the stripped chassis of their bond.

The Shifting Gears pilot was written by The Simpsons vets and Duncanville co-creators Mike Scully and Julie Thacker Scully, who will also be executive producing alongside Tim Allen and other Last Man Standing alum Marty Adelstein, Becky Clements, Richard Baker and Rick Messina. With Dennings producing, that’s a huge squad of sitcom familiars bringing their talents to this new project, so it seems pretty likely to get ordered up barring any huge whiffs.

Save for her lead role as Jules in Hulu’s Dollhouse, Kat Dennings has largely tethered herself to the MCU in recent years. Her Thor franchise character Darcy Lewis reemerged within the twisted world of WandaVision (which had its own sitcom connections, for what it’s worth), and then cameoed in 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder. The actress also voiced Darcy across two episodes of Disney+’s What If…?

This would mark Dennings’ first network comedy role since 2 Broke Girls wrapped up on Fox in 2017, though she also lent her voice to an episode of The Simpsons that same year. Beyond that, her voice could also be heard in Dallas & Robo and Big Mouth, as well as one of her hubby’s 2021 music videos (“Everybody Sins”).

Head to our 2024 TV schedule to see what other new and returning shows are on the way while waiting to hear more about Shifting Gears' fate at ABC.

Kat Dennings has solidified herself as a relatively beloved star within the Hollywood landscape after being in the public eye for a little over two decades. She’s also become a fan-favorite crush for a number of fans. It’s for that reason that Twitter didn’t take it so well in 2021 when it was confirmed that Dennings got engaged to musician Andrew W.K. Over two years after their engagement began, the actress and her longtime partner finally tied the knot during a sweet ceremony. Photos from the event are now starting to hit the web and, upon that happening, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Grey and more reached out. 

The 37-year-old actress shared some sweet photos from the event on her Instagram account this week. Pics for the event were taken by Jose Villa of Vogue and show the couple looking absolutely delighted on their big day. The comments of the 2 Broke Girls alum’s post were filled with kindness and congratulations from fans and celebrities. When it comes to the latter, Reese Witherspoon entered the chat with a sweet response: 

The star of The Morning Show (which is available to Apple TV+ subscribers) was definitely kind to say that. Following her lead was Jennifer Grey, as the actress – who’s returning for Dirty Dancing 2 – shared a warm message of her own: 

Another person who commented was someone who was actually present at the ceremony, Brenda Song. Both she and the beautiful bride worked together on the Hulu series Dollface, which ran for two seasons. Song was absolutely beaming with pride when she reacted to her former co-star’s nuptials: 

All of the comments from the stars mentioned above are nothing short of sweet, and there are plenty of other sentimental messages as well. Check out some of the other tender thoughts celebrities shared: 

• Ugh. Perfection! So so happy for you. - Christy Carlson Romano
• Oh my goddess 😍😍😍 what are gorgeously lovely couple ♥️♥️♥️ - Jessy Schram
• These looks are fire. - Tara Strong
• Omg Kat, you’re GORGEOUS 😭🤍 What stunning pics and congrats my friend!!! Wow so beautiful! - Mallory Ervin

The relationship between Kat Dennings and Andrew W.K. began sometime in early 2021, and the romance was only confirmed about a week before their engagement was revealed that May. Interestingly, the two have long had a connection of sorts because, as Vanity Fair notes, Dennings had been a fan of W.K’s for some time. As Dennings told Vogue, they met under “mystical circumstances.” The two tied the knot in Los Angeles in November, and the ceremony was intimate. It apparently only included 15 guests, including the aforementioned Brenda Song, who attended with her partner (and photoshoot mate) Macaulay Culkin. Check out photos from the big day: 

Kat Dennings – who has delighted fans as Darcy Lewis in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for over a decade now – seems to be soaking in all of the marital bliss. It’s truly a wonderful time for her and her new husband. And what’s even sweeter is that they’re receiving so much love from their friends and fans. Let’s wish the happy couple well as they embark on this new chapter in their lives!

If you’d like to see the actress’ performances as Darcy, stream the Marvel movies (in order) as well as the TV shows using a Disney+ subscription. 

One of 2 Broke Girls’ most memorable (and sometimes panned) storylines involved series lead Caroline Channing (played by Beth Behrs) and the horse she brought with her when she came to live with Max Black (Wandavision star Kat Dennings). The plotline was ludicrous given the two women lived in a Brooklyn neighborhood, but it was also one of the most enduring facets of the sitcom, spurred on by the fact that in real life the actresses really loved the horse. 

In fact, when 2 Broke Girls was initially canceled back in 2017, it was Behrs who responded to the news by thanking none other than the horse:

... She probably wasn't in a thankful mood toward CBS given the surprise 2017 cancelation of the series. But what happened to Chestnut after the CBS sitcom ended? 

Who Played Chestnut? Nina Tassler Actually Fired The Original Horse

Nina Tassler, the head honcho at CBS when the sitcom was first making its way onto the airwaves (and who was also around when How I Met Your Dad was originally halted), was not a fan of the original horse hired to play Chestnut. When the series was first coming together, the show had apparently hired a “blond buckskin” to play the character, but Tassler wasn’t happy with the original horse when she did a walk through on the set of the series. 

It was nothing against the original Chestnut, but Tassler noted in a THR profile that type of horse was usually seen in Westerns and not in stables in New York City, where the character of Caroline hailed from. Producer Michael Patrick King would later joke that “Nina had the balls to fire a horse.” Eventually a brown horse would be cast. 

Meanwhile, multiple horses would eventually take on the duties of Chestnut. Originally, a horse named Rocky portrayed the character, though in later interviews Behrs mentioned another horse, Gunner, who eventually took over the role on the small screen. In 2014, while filming an episode, Dennings and Behrs both shared a picture of themselves with the horse. 

Chestnut Developed A Special Connection With Stars Beth Behrs And Kat Dennings

Speaking at a TCA function for the series, both Dennings and Behrs admitted they loved Rocky, the horse that early on portrayed Chestnut on the hit sitcom. The two confirmed they were “so close” to the horse before Dennings admitted: 

The two touched on how Rocky really was whip-smart and could sense their emotions, with Behrs saying Rocky was “highly protective,” particularly if a guest star got “too close.” Dennings mentioned another memory from set in which she got more emotional than anticipated and Rocky/Chestnut was there for her. 

After Gunner took over duties, Behrs admitted that it was 2 Broke Girls that led her to a love of horses, and helped her to learn to “live in the present,” telling People: 

What Happened To Chestnut After 2 Broke Girls Ended?

Following the ending of 2 Broke Girls Beth Behrs admitted that she made some movies hoping to take home Chestnut herself. By then, Behrs was a lover of horses and someone actively involved in rescuing them (more on this later). She'd had a dream for Chestnut, but she said it didn't pan out how she'd hoped it would.  

The actress had previously told THR that said trainer actually had a ranch she'd called "beautiful" in Ventura County. While the show was still running, she'd go and ride Gunner sometimes, so while she'd hoped to nab the horses, in some ways Gunner was already home. 

How 2 Broke Girls Led Beth Behrs To Horse Activism

The actress has said that it was Whitney Cummings -- who co-created 2 Broke Girls with Michael Patrick King -- who was a catalyst for her love of owning horses. (This also probably explains Chestnut being a part of the show in general.) She spent a lot of time on Cummings' show riding a horse on the lot, and it was during her time on the sitcom that her obsession and activism developed, and that love has continued even as she went on to star in another CBS multi-cam comedy The Neighborhood. 

In fact, she told Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer in a YouTube interview that the trainer during her sitcom days gets a little of the credit, but that she and her husband have gone all in on horses since then, adopting Belle and Rosie, who stay in a stable in the Valley outside Los Angeles.

The actress always had a love of horses, but the show inspired her to adopt and she also mentioned to People the ASPCA helped her on the journey, noting there are a lot of misconceptions about helping horses. 

So, there you have it. It's been years since Two Broke Girls unceremoniously ended before it was able to wrap up its story on CBS, but the legend of Chestnut still lives on and even became an inspiration for one of the women who led the show. 

There comes a time in our lives when a comedy arrives in theaters that is so iconic, you can’t help but love it years later and want everyone you know to watch it as well. For me, that was The 40-Year-Old Virgin. From the time I saw the amazing Steve Carell-led movie, I knew I was in for a fun time. 

But now, the movie is turning 18 in 2023, and the cast has gone on to do some wildly amazing things with their careers. From Carell to Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks, here is where The 40-Year-Old Virgin cast is today, and what they have been up to over the last several years. 

Steven Carell (Andy Stitzer)

First up on the list is the amazing Steve Carell, who played the lead character, Andy Stitzer, in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. The actor has gone on to appear in many movies, such as Evan Almighty, Date Night, Anchorman 2: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Battle of the Sexes, and more. He’s also started to appear in many more dramatic roles as well, including Beautiful Boy, Foxcatcher (which earned him an Academy Award nomination), Welcome to Marwen, and more. 

Carell obviously also had major success as the lead in the American version of The Office cast, but besides that, he was the lead of the Netflix series, Space Force, and was one of the leads of the popular Apple TV+ show, The Morning Show. He was also a lead in FX’s The Patient. 

Coming up, Carell is going to be in the new Wes Anderson film, Asteroid City, as well as Despicable Me 4, where he's reprising Gru from the Despicable Me franchise, as well as a movie titled Imaginary Friends.  

Catherine Keener (Trish Piedmont)

Moving on, we have Catherine Keener, who played Trish Piedmont in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Keener has been in many movies since this, including Into the Wild, Unless, Captain Phillips, The Croods, Trust, Genova, Capote, An American Crime, The Adam Project, Polar Bear and others. She was also one of the characters in Jordan Peele’s directing debut, Get Out, and voiced Evelyn in Pixar’s The Incredibles 2. 

Keener also has experience in television with roles in shows such as Kidding, Show Me a Hero, Modern Love, and Forever, among others. She also recently had a guest role on the Bob Odenkirk-led show, Lucky Hank. Coming up, she is actually going to be in Joker 2, otherwise known as Joker: Folie à Deux, so keep an eye out for her. 

Paul Rudd (David)

Paul Rudd has truly had a great career over the past couple of decades, and in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, he played David. Since, Rudd has been making a name for himself in many movies and television series. Most recently he’s played Ant-Man in several Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, but he’s also appeared in several other films, including Knocked Up, This Is The End, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Sausage Party (which is getting a sequel series), The Little Prince, This is 40, Dinner for Schmucks, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and more. 

Rudd has also been in a lot of television lately as well, including parts in his own series, Living with Yourself, as well as roles in shows such as Parks and Recreation, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, The Shrink Next Door, Tiny World, Burning Love, and Reno 911!, among others. 

Coming up, Rudd will be in the Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel, as well as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, and the third season of Only Murders in the Building. 

Romany Malco (Jay)

Romany Malco played Jay in the movie, and he’s certainly seen his career grow over the last eighteen years. He’s been in movies such as Night School, Almost Christmas, Holiday Rush, When The Bough Breaks, Gulliver’s Travels, Think Like A Man and more. 

Malco also appeared in TV shows in main roles such as Weeds, No Ordinary Family, A Million Little Things, Mad Dogs, Blunt Talk and others. He also frequently guest stars on podcasts. 

Seth Rogen (Cal)

Rogen played Cal here, and has certainly made a name for himself in Hollywood over the last few years. He’s been in so many movies, it’s hard to name them all, so I’ll list some of his best – The Fabelmans directed by Steven Spielberg, This Is The End, Knocked Up, The Interview, the Neighbors franchise, and more. He’s also done voice roles in movies such as Sausage Party, The Lion King and the Kung Fu Panda franchise. 

Rogen has also been very successful in television. In terms of acting, he’s had recurring roles on Arrested Development, The League and done plenty of voice roles. He also had a lead role in the Pam & Tommy cast. Rogen also works as an executive producer, and worked on the popular Amazon Prime series, The Boys, as well as the superhero series, Invincible. Coming up, he’ll be in a television series called Platonic, and working on many other television shows as a producer.  

Elizabeth Banks (Beth)

Next up on this list is Elizabeth Banks, who played Beth, and she’s done so much since the film was released. Her best roles in movies so far include Brightburn, The Hunger Games franchise, Invincible, Lovely, Call Jane, The Lego Movie and its sequel, the hilarious Pitch Perfect movies and Magic Mike XXL among more. She also directed Cocaine Bear. 

Banks also had a role in Scrubs, as well as a major role in Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp and Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later, and a major role in Mrs. America. Coming up, she is going to be in movies such as The Beanie Bubble, Migration, A Mistake, and Signal Hill.

Leslie Mann (Nicky)

Moving on is Leslie Mann, who portrayed Nicky. Mann has been in movies such as Knocked Up, 17 Again, Rio and its sequel, The Comedian, Welcome to Marwen, The Bubble, Cha Cha Real Smooth, the stop-motion film ParaNorman and more. 

Mann has also been in many guest roles on television in shows such as Modern Family and The Simpsons, and also narrated Makers: Women Who Make America. Coming up, she is going to be in Rocking the Boat, a comedy also starring Rebel Wilson. 

Jane Lynch (Paula)

Jane Lynch’s Paula was one of my favorite characters, and Lynch only continued to grow in popularity after her appearance in this movie. She is certainly known much more for her roles in television, with one of my personal favorites being Sue Sylvester from Glee, but she’s been in many other television roles. 

These include a recurring guest part in the legendary Two and a Half Men, The L Word, Angels From Hell, Final Space, and more. She also had a guest role on the Hulu original show, Only Murders in the Building. Lynch has hosted several game shows, with some of her best being Hollywood Game Night and Weakest Link. 

The actress has appeared in movies such as For Your Consideration, Julie & Julia, Chimps, Role Models, and more, among voices roles for Wreck-It-Ralph and its sequel. Coming up, Lynch will be in Animals and Fairy Tale Forest.  

Kat Dennings (Marla Piedmont)

Last but not least, we have Kat Dennings, who played Marla Piedmont in the comedy. Dennings has worked on multiple television shows in main roles, including Dollface, 2 Broke Girls, and more, but she also portrays Darcy Lewis in the MCU, a role she’s reprised several times, most recently in Thor: Love and Thunder. 

Other than that, she’s appeared in television shows such as Drunk History, Big Mouth, and others. Dennings has also had roles in movies like The Answer Man, Daydream Nation, Friendsgiving, To Write Love on Her Arms and more. 

With a cast this impressive, it’s not a surprise that they’ve been in so much since the film came out. Maybe now you'll have a new movie or show to binge-watch. 

Although most of the characters featured in the Marvel Cinematic Universe originally hail from the pages of Marvel Comics, there are a handful who were created specifically for the franchise and were later brought to the comics. We can now count Darcy Lewis in this group, because following Kat Dennings shining as the character across a few Marvel movies and the Disney+ show WandaVision (albeit with her subplot being scrapped), Darcy is finally making her printed page debut in Scarlet Witch’s new comic book series.

Fresh off of Scarlet Witch, a.k.a. Wanda Maximoff, serving as Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ main antagonist and Darcy Lewis cameoing in Thor: Love and Thunder (both movies can be watched with a Disney+ subscription), these two characters will be crossing paths in the new ongoing Scarlet Witch ongoing series being written by Steve Orlando, illustrated by Sara Pichelli and colored by Matt Wilson. To be clear, this is not taking place in the MCU continuity, but in the main Marvel Comics universe, though it is confusing that both these realities are called Earth-616. Regardless, the series follows Wanda finally at peace with herself and jumping back into the superhero business, and with a new costume to boot!

You can read Polygon’s interview with Steve Orlando and Sara Pichelli to get a better sense of what to expect Scarlet Witch’s new comic book series, but on the subject of Darcy Lewis’ involvement, Orlando, who previously wrote Scarlet Witch for the Darkhold miniseries, shared what she brings to the story: with these words:

Steve Orlando also mentioned that readers will see the comics version of Darcy Lewis hanging around Wanda Maximoff’s new magic shop, which will help her play a more active role in her community. While it sounds like comic book Darcy’s personality is in line with the Kat Dennings version, it sounds like that’s where the similarities will end. Who knows, maybe we’ll learn in a later issue that she is friendly with Jane Foster or has ties to S.W.O.R.D., but for now, her chief purpose is to provide witty commentary on the insane superhuman/supernatural phenomena that Scarlet Witch deals with on a consistent basis.

Kat Dennings debuted as Darcy Lewis in 2011’s Thor, with the character being a political science major who volunteered to be the research assistant for Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster and Stellan Skarsgård’s Erik Selvig in New Mexico for college credit. Darcy and Jane were still working together in 2013’s Thor: The Dark World, but then the former didn’t appear in the MCU until WandaVision. In the time between the second Thor movie and the aftermath of the Blip, Darcy obtained a doctorate in astrophysics, and the first of Marvel Studios’ Disney+ series saw her working closely with Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo and Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau during the Westview Anomaly. As mentioned earlier, Darcy also popped up in the most recent Thor movie, although Dennings initially didn’t think she’d be brought into Love and Thunder.

The first issue of this new Scarlet Witch comic book series will be available to buy digitally and at your local comic book shop in January 2023. For the MCU fans out there, read through our guides detailing the upcoming Marvel movies and upcoming Marvel TV shows.

The newest entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor: Love and Thunder, provided some solid surprises for fans when it came to the title character, but it also gave longtime fans of the franchise a few extra moments with characters we know and love. We got to see a brief appearance by Stellan Skarsgård, but we also, quite surprisingly, even got to see Kat Dennings’ Darcy, and the actress shared a “Darcy Selfie” now that the movie has been out long enough that it’s not really a spoiler.

While Kat Dennings’ Darcy had a significant role in the first MCU series on Disney+, WandaVision, the actress claimed more than once that nobody had called her in regards to appearing in Thor: Love and Thunder, so we didn’t expect to see her at all, and while the role was basically a cameo, fans of Darcy were happy to get that much, and to get this pic of Darcy on Twitter. The thirst in the comments is strong, be warned.

Darcy appears briefly at the beginning of Thor: Love and Thunder. Just after we’ve been introduced to Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster, and learned she has cancer. Jane is sitting in a chair getting her chemo treatment when Darcy walks in with an arm full of snacks to keep her company. It’s not much, but it’s nice to see her supporting her friend.

Kat Dennings’ Darcy was a significant part of the first two Thor films, but then she, along with Natalie Portman, was missing entirely from Thor: Ragnarok. With Portman officially set to make her return in Thor: Love and Thunder there was certainly some expectation that Dennings might also be in the film, but nothing had been confirmed up until the movie’s release.

Dennings had made comments early in production that, while there had been conversations about her being involved, nothing had been decided when production started. It’s possible Dennings was simply keeping her involvement quiet, it certainly wouldn’t be the first time somebody appearing in a Marvel movie claimed they were not, or the scene may have come late in production or during reshoots. 

Darcy Lewis is certainly one of Marvel’s popular supporting characters and so one hopes the MCU will continue to find a use for her. Following her turn on WandaVision Kat Dennings lent her voice to Darcy in an episode of What If…? And with that series coming back for another season there’s the possibility we could see more of her there. While the future of Thor and the future of Jane Foster are two very big question marks that will likely influence Darcy’s future in that franchise, the possibility she could become a larger part of those movies again is always there.  

Kat Dennings made her MCU return in WandaVision was a welcome surprise as she didn’t return for Thor: Ragnarok. Denning’s Darcy Lewis channeled every thought or opinion of moviegoers throughout her various Marvel appearances. But true Marvel fans will always be a soft spot for Lewis as Jane Foster’s sardonic assistant. It seemed the WandaVision star was in her feelings as she appeared to miss her Thor family. The actress decided to share a throwback photo featuring Thor: Love and Thunder’s Chris Hemsworth.

The Thor: The Dark World star was feeling all nostalgic as she took to Instagram to share a special throwback image. While she enjoyed her return in the Disney+ series WandaVision, it appeared her Thor movie cast will always have her heart. All of Kat Dennings’ sentimentality came pouring out as she chose to give Thor diehards a small behind-the-scenes moment. See the cute sibling moment between her and Chris Hemsworth below.

Dennings and Hemsworth were giving all the brother-sister vibes in the sweet throwback. The headlock proved just how close the co-stars had grown filming those movies together. Kat Dennings recalled “almost crying” after finding the picture years after doing the Thor sequel. There was a longing from Dennings for more time with her Thor co-stars.

Unfortunately, Thor fans won’t get to see Dennings’ Darcy Lewis return to the fold in Thor: Love and Thunder. But Marvel fans shouldn’t be too sad as there might be more in store for Lewis, according to Kat Dennings. Despite the image only showing Hemsworth, the actress formed a special bond with her other co-star Natalie Portman. Having been friends before starring in the Thor films, Marvel heads were so impressed by the actresses’ friendship that they increased Lewis’ overall scenes with Jane Foster. So, her (and Portman’s) absence in Ragnarok were noticeable.

WandaVision showrunner Matt Shankman explained Dennings’ absence as Darcy Lewis obtained her doctorate between Thor: Ragnarok and the Disney+ miniseries. Thankfully, Lewis won’t go completely missing from the MCU this time around. Despite not being in Love and Thunder, Kat Dennings called Natalie Portman’s upcoming tenure as Thor a “genius move” as a Marvel fan herself. At least, the Two Broke Girls vet still has love and appreciation for her former (and probable future?) co-stars.

With Kat Dennings now back in the Marvel fold, she not only popped up in WandaVision but the Marvel animated anthology What If…? as well. Viewers will have to wait until more news comes out about Dennings’ Marvel re-integration. Before she pops up again, you can peep the upcoming slate of MCU television shows and movies to see what’s on the horizon. Along with upcoming Marvel projects, you can check out our 2022 schedule of upcoming films.

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The 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards will begin in only a matter of hours and, as a result, Hollywood is currently gearing up for TV’s biggest night. This year’s list of nominees includes a variety of series including Emmy regulars like The Handmaid’s Tale and The Crown along with genre shows like The Mandalorian and the recently cancelled Lovecraft Country. Superheroes will also be firmly represented, as Marvel Studios’ WandaVision is one of the genre series that will be competing for gold statues this evening. Fans are eager to see if the show takes home any prizes as is series star Kat Dennings, who showed some love for the series ahead of tonight’s ceremony.

Kat Dennings reprised her Marvel Cinematic Universe role of Darcy Lewis for WandaVision. While the witty actress was unable to secure an Emmy nomination for her fine work on the limited series, she just seems more than happy to root on her fan-favorite show. Dennings took to Twitter to post her message of encouragement. Check out the post down below:

The Marvel show is currently up for several Primetime Emmys. These include Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (with three different episodes in the running), Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (for Kathryn Hahn), Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (for Paul Bettany) and Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (for Elizabeth). The series is also up for the coveted Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series.

WandaVision emerged as a major player during this awards season, and it’s not surprising given how hot it was out of the gate. The show, which is the first TV production to come from Marvel Studios, premiered this past February and was met with a wave of positive reviews and massive viewership numbers. Critics aimed praise at the performances, set design, music and deeper themes of the show.

So far, the show has already struck awards gold for Disney and Marvel Studios in other ways. Last weekend, the series earned three wins of its 15 nominations at the Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards. WandaVision took home awards for Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Program (Half-Hour) and Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes as well as Original Music and Lyrics for the viral hit “Agatha All Along.” That third win actually garnered a perfect response from one of the show’s stars.

With the momentum WandaVison currently holds, the show certainly has a chance of earning some additional awards. And even if it doesn’t, the fact that it’s even nominated (alongside fellow comic book show The Boys) speaks to the growing recognition that superhero shows are receiving. And as times change, it could also mean big things for the plethora of future MCU shows that will be arriving on Disney+, which you can sign up for using this link.

Most fans will probably have their eyes glued to their TVs, just as Kat Dennings will. We’ll see what happens when the Primetime Emmy Awards air tonight, September 19, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe is always growing, with characters returning after years away. Thor actors Kat Dennings and Natalie Portman certainly know this, as they were noticeably absent in Phase Three ahead of their returns in WandaVision and Thor: Love and Thunder respectively. And now Dennings has spoken about how she feels about her co-star’s Thor return, and whether Jane misses Darcy.

In the first Thor movie we met Kat Dennings and Natalie Portman’s characters, with the duo also appearing in the first sequel. But while Darcy returned in WandaVision, she’s not expected to star in Thor: Love and Thunder. Portman’s Jane will become Mighty Thor throughout the course of Taika Waititi’s sequel, and Dennings reacted to this news saying:

Same, though. While we won’t be seeing Darcy and Jane’s reunion in Thor: Love and Thunder, there’s no sore feelings for Kate Dennings. Instead, she’s eager to see Natalie Portman finally get superpowers of her own and get in on the action as Mighty Thor.

Kat Dennings’ comments to ET Online show how even the cast of the Marvel Cinematic Universe are ultimately big fans. And since she's a personal friend of Natalie Portman, the Two Broke Girls alum has even more interest in seeing Mighty Thor come to life. Although comic book fans know that this transformation will likely come with some emotional material for Portman to grapple with.

Marvel fans can re-watch Kat Dennings and Natalie Portman in the MCU on Disney+. You can use this link to sign up for the streaming service.

Later in that same interview, Kat Dennings mused more about Darcy’s connection to Jane Foster. When asked if she thinks Jane misses her character, the WandaVision actress got honest. Namely about her not knowing much. As she put it,

Solid point. While folks like Kevin Feige know the direction of the overall MCU, security on the shared universe is notoriously tight. As such, Kat Dennings isn’t privy to what’s happening in Thor: Love and Thunder. More specifically, what Darcy and Jane’s relationship might look like nowadays.

Regardless, it’s great to see the return of these Thor characters in Phase Four of the MCU. Because while we’re being introduced to a slew of new characters, some classic favorites are also returning. We’ll just have to wait and see how it all shakes out, and if Darcy and Jane ever appear together onscreen.

Thor: Love and Thunder is currently expected to arrive in theaters on May 6th, 2022. In the meantime, check out the 2021 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.

While What If…? is the current Marvel and Disney+ show releasing new episodes, some fans still can’t get enough of the show that started it all on the Disney streamer: WandaVision. When WandaVision dropped on Disney+ earlier this year, fans could not stop talking about two characters from previous Marvel films that finally had their time to shine: Kat Dennings’ Darcy Lewis and Randall Park’s Agent Woo. Even though WandaVision was a limited series, could it still be possible to see those two again? Dennings shares her thoughts.

Kat Dennings is known in the MCU as Darcy Lewis from the first two Thor movies. Fans were ecstatic when she came back in WandaVision and was a prominent character. In an interview with PopCulture, Dennings talked about Marvel and when a spinoff featuring her fan-favorite character came up, as well as Randall Park’s Ant-Man character, the actress weighed in:

Perhaps one of the best parts about WandaVision was when Darcy and Jimmy got together to try to figure out what was going on. Since the two of them appeared in separate MCU movies, this was the first time they shared the screen in a Marvel project and it was instant chemistry. The banter between them and the quick bond they formed made fans want a spinoff or at least something to get more of them. And since WandaVision seems to be staying with just one season, it’s still possible that Marvel could get something else out of it.

The great things about the Marvel and Disney+ series is that there’s a chance that characters from different MCU movies will interact with each other and WandaVision proved that it can work. Darcy and Jimmy are two fan-favorite characters who weren’t seen too much in their respective movies, but they played a big part in WandaVision and it was perfect. It’s unknown whether or not Marvel will actually listen to fans and at least try to give them a spinoff but at least Kat Dennings is definitely on board. Since it’s unlikely she will appear in the upcoming Thor: Love & Thunder movie, fans can only hope that this won’t be the last time Darcy Lewis is seen.

It will be interesting to see if that spinoff ever comes to fruition, considering it will involve two characters that aren’t seen as much in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but are adored by fans. And if it’s not a WandaVision spinoff or another movie, maybe there is another way? One can hope. Fingers crossed it does happen, because I need it.

WandaVision was full of surprise moments and cameos that had everyone talking but, ahead of the show's premiere, one element fans were likely surprised to learn of was the return of everyone’s favorite, dry-witted research assistant, Darcy Lewis. It had been a few years since Kat Dennings had been involved in the MCU, and she did not disappoint. However, it appears Dennings’ Darcy almost had an on-brand subplot on the show.

Although the return of Kat Dennings’ Darcy Lewis was a pleasant surprise for Marvel fans, her appearance in WandaVision brought more questions than answers regarding her lengthy absence. According to showrunner Jac Schaeffer, viewers were supposed to know more about her exploits following 2013's Thor: The Dark World. The WandaVision creator revealed Darcy’s story was more fleshed out in the initial writing stages, saying:

It's honestly not surprising to hear that there was supposed to be more to Darcy Lewis’ story, given how long she's been away. Some Marvel fans even wondered what happened to the character over the past several years. Though it would’ve filled in some gaps about Darcy’s MCU return, there might’ve been good reasons for not including the subplot.

While talking about the acclaimed Disney+ series with Rolling Stone, Jac Schaeffer delved more into the lost Darcy story and revealed how some elements were reused later. When it came to the abandoned subplot, Schaeffer further explained:

It was nice to learn that the WandaVision showrunner incorporated some elements of the abandoned plot into Darcy’s eventual arc. Given Kat Dennings’ role as comic relief, the subplot would’ve been right in line with her character, but the personal storyline could’ve distracted viewers from the complex storytelling in the series. All in all, Dennings’ ultimate role in the television series was perfect for the show-within-show plot.

And luckily, Kat Dennings was down for whatever, as she told Rolling Stone she didn’t expect to return to the MCU after eight years. And what seems to have excited her the most is the fact that Darcy is an astrophysicist.

While knowing more about Darcy Lewis’s personal life would’ve been exciting, Kat Dennings’ WandaVision return was definitely satisfying. Darcy’s quick wit and irreverent humor made some of the series’ darker moments palatable, and maybe her return means more MCU adventures to the witty astrophysicist. To get more of your Darcy Lewis fix, you can stream the Marvel series on Disney+ now.

It wasn’t that long ago that we learned Marvel actress Kat Dennings was dating rock singer Andrew W.K., but they’ve already taken a huge step forward in their relationship. Dennings announced today that she and W.K. are engaged. Of course, given the actress’ fanbase, it was to be expected that a lot of people would go on Twitter to react to the engagement, and a lot of people aren’t taking the news well.

Before we get into reactions though, let’s look at how Kat Dennings announced that she’s engaged to Andrew W.K. Like so many people do nowadays, Dennings took to social media to reveal her life-changing moment. Take a look at her Instagram post:

As expected, Kat Dennings is overjoyed that she and Andrew W.K. are on track to be married. And to be fair, there are plenty of people on Twitter who are congratulating the happy couple and pleased that Dennings is taking this big step forward. But look around, and you’ll also find plenty of folks who are having trouble coping with this development, namely because they wish they were in W.K.’s proverbial shoes. Take this person, who channeled Yu-Gi-Oh! to channel their disappointment:

Then we have this person, who decided to bring out a major player from the Marvel Cinematic Universe to share their disappointment that they’re not engaged to Kat Dennings. It’s rather fitting, as Dennings has participated in the MCU as Darcy Lewis across three projects now.

Others decided to adopt a common facade of pretending to be happy to mask their sadness about not being able to marry Kat Dennings.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the announcement of Kat Dennings’ engagement comes just days after Happiest Season actress Aubrey Plaza revealed that she’d married writer/director Jeff Baena. This person certainly didn’t.

So yeah, clearly there are folks who will need to come to terms with Kat Dennings being off the romantic market. But let’s end things on a more positive note and highlight this tweet, which highlighted Dennings’ time on the CBS sitcom 2 Broke Girls.

For now, there’s no word on Kat Dennings and Andrew W.K.’s wedding date, but here’s to the couple having many happy years together. Dennings previously dated singer Josh Groban from 2014 to 2016, while W.K. was previously married to Cherie Lily, who performed in his band. W.K. said earlier this month that he and Lily entered divorce proceedings in late 2019.

As for Kat Dennings’ professional life, after being absent from the MCU since 2013’s Thor: The Dark World, the actress reprised Darcy Lewis in Disney+’s WandaVision, which saw the character investigating the Wanda Maximoff-created Hex surrounding WestView with Monica Rambeau and Jimmy Woo. Dennings also recently appeared in the comedy movie Friendsgiving, as well as stars in the Hulu comedy series Dollface.

Stay locked on CinemaBlend for more news about Kat Dennings, and don’t forget to browse through our upcoming 2021 movies schedule to learn what cinematic offerings arrive later this year.

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for much of what happens in WandaVision. If you are not fully caught up on the Disney+ show, please stand by. If you are caught up, stay tuned!

Well, I would say that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is off to a pretty amusing start with their new line-up of multi-episode Disney+ exclusives. By kicking things with off with the return of Elizabeth Olsen, as Scarlet Witch, leading one of the most bizarre comic book adaptations ever, the franchise, in its typical fashion, resolved a few pressing mysteries while prompting new questions for us to ponder. For instance, how does the WandaVision cast intend to follow-up such a game-changer of a TV series?

Developed by Jac Schaeffer and directed by Matt Shakman, the 9-episode miniseries event brought back a few MCU veterans, newcomers to the live action comic book adaptation scene, and even one surprising cameo suggesting a groundbreaking movie universe crossover to perform this mind-boggling, avant-garde recreation of classic sitcoms throughout history. It also helps that a few stars already had experience acting in television comedies.

That being said, is a return to sitcom glory (or even a more traditional debut of it) to be expected for some of WandaVision’s most notable cast members? We shall figure out the answer to that and more when we take a dive into what the stars of the hit MCU show have next on their plates, starting with the magical, Marvelous main character herself.

Elizabeth Olsen (Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch)

Ironically, one of Elizabeth Olsen’s first acting gigs was an uncredited 1995 appearance on Full House with her older twin sisters, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, years before sending up other sitcoms of the era as her MCU character on WandaVision. Now officially dubbed the Scarlet Witch, the 32-year-old actress will continue to explore Wanda Maximoff’s journey in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, director Sam Raimi’s upcoming Benedict Cumberbatch-led sequel, which is currently filming and set for a 2022 release.

Paul Bettany (Vision)

Sitcoms have never appeared on Paul Bettany's filmography, so I suppose we can thank his comedically charged performance as a medieval hype man in A Knight's Tale and JARVIS' built-in penchant for sarcasm in the early MCU movies for his smooth transition into the sitcom dad role. The 49-year-old actor, who also played the closeted title character of Amazon Prime's Uncle Frank, will next star in the BBC/Amazon Prime original miniseries A Very British Scandal as Duke of Argyll Ian Campbell during the time of his messy divorce from Duchess Margaret (Claire Foy). However, despite its tearful conclusion, the WandaVision finale hints that we have not yet seen the last of Bettany as Vision (or, perhaps, as White Vision).

Kathryn Hahn (Agnes/Agatha Harkness)

From her hilarious recurring spot on Parks and Recreation, major role in 2015's The Visit, and voicing Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Kathryn Hahn was fully prepared to play a nosy neighbor on WandaVision, who turns out to be a witch named Agatha Harkness, whom the 47-year-old Emmy nominee hopes to reappear as someday. Until then, she is set to reunite with her Anchorman co-stars Will Ferrell and (fellow MCU actor) Paul Rudd for a series adaptation of the true crime podcast The Shrink Next Door for Apple TV+, where she will also reprise her role on the animated musical series Central Park in Season 2.

Teyonah Parris (Monica Rambeau)

Even though Teyonah Parris had already been announced as the MCU's grown-up Monica Rambeau, her identity was revealed on WandaVision in a pretty memorable way. Hopefully, 2021 will be the year horror fans finally see the Dear White People star in the Jordan Peele-produced "rebootquel" of Candyman, helmed by Nia DaCosta, who will also direct Parris in Captain Marvel II, which likely sees the newly super-powered Monica officially debut as Photon (or, as the comics currently refer to her as, Spectrum) in 2022. The 33-year-old is also filming the sci-fi comedy They Cloned Tyrone, with John Boyega and Jamie Foxx.

Randall Park (Agent Jimmy Woo)

Before first appearing in the MCU in 2018's Ant-Man and the Wasp, Randall Park was best known as Louis Huang on Fresh Off the Boat, Kim Jong-Un in The Interview, and, of course, "Asian Jim" on The Office in 2012. While I am sure that we will see more of S.H.I.E.L.D. agent turned Fed, Jimmy Woo, after WandaVision, I cannot be certain of where or when. I can say, however, that the 46-year-old Always Be My Maybe writer and star has a voice role in August 2021's Paw Patrol: The Movie, among a number of other projects in development, including a currently untitled collaboration with Hawaii Five-0's Daniel Dae Kim.

Kat Dennings (Darcy Lewis)

Kat Dennings actually joined the MCU in 2011's Thor just months before hitting sitcom glory with 2 Broke Girls and, even more fascinating, landed her first starring role on the short-lived comedy Raising Dad opposite a young Brie Larson in 2001. The 34-year-old actress has been able to confirm that there is more of her as Darcy Lewis to come after WandaVision, but she was not able say much else, other than the slightly disappointing reveal that it will not be in Thor: Love and Thunder.

Josh Stamberg (Director Tyler Hayward)

After many recurring spots and guest appearances on notable series like The Affair and Parenthood, Josh Stamberg landed a major, major starring role on a TV series as S.W.O.R.D.'s ruthless director Tyler Hayward, which also served as a reunion for him and his Afternoon Delight co-star Kathryn Hahn, and Paul Bettany, whom he appeared in the 2010 fantasy action thriller Legion with. At the moment, there is, evidently, nothing to report on what the 50-year-old actor has in store next, but I would be willing to bet his time on WandaVision could be the beginning of one vengeful MCU arc.

Debra Jo Rupp (Mrs. Hart/Sharon Davis)

For all of its heart-stopping cameos, one of the more endearingly heartwarming appearances on WandaVision was that of Debra Jo Rupp as the wife of Vision's boss, Mr. Hart, in a wonderful callback to her best-known role on That '70s Show as the aggressively motherly Kitty Forman. This, of course, would turn out to be nothing more than her sitcom-esque persona under the manipulation of one grief-stricken Wanda Maximoff, but I digress. The 70-year-old Friends actress is swerving a bit further into dramatic acting by starring in the dark comedy Butterscotch, which is currently in pre-production.

Julian Hilliard (Billy Maximoff)

When Eagle-Eyed Marvel Comics fans were able to preemptively put together that WandaVision was taking inspiration from the famous House of M storyline, it became pretty clear that the pair of infants Wanda and Vision held in the trailer were going to be their magically created twin boys, Billy and Tommy. Playing Billy is Julian Hilliard, whom you may recognize mainly from several horror movies and TV shows, including Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House as a young Oliver Jackson-Cohen, and in Color Out of Space as Nicolas Cage's onscreen son. The 9-year-old will retain his early Scream King status when he appears in The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It in June 2021, as a real-life child who claimed his homicidal acts were the result of demonic possession.

Jett Klyne (Tommy Maximoff)

Playing Billy's fraternal twin brother, Tommy, is Jett Klyne, who has also gained quite the reputation for horror from roles such as the real Brahms in 2016's The Boy, a younger Harvey Kinkle on Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and a child with a very disturbing imaginary friend in the 2020 Shudder original film Z. I would not be surprised if both Tommy and Billy would one day reincarnate into their superhero personas, but there is no telling if the young WandaVision stars will be there to reprise them when the time comes. However, Klyne does have another project on the horizon, which is not horror, but a crime thriller of horrifying circumstances called 13 Steps, which has completed filming.

Evan Peters (Pietro Maximoff/Ralph Bohner)

As far as I (and likely the rest of the Marvel fandom) are concerned, no addition to the WandaVision cast was more bewildering and exhilarating than Evan Peters, seemingly filling in for his Kick-Ass co-star Aaron Taylor-Johnson's slain MCU character by also reprising his X-Men franchise role of the same speedy superhero. However, some viewers were a little disappointed to learn in the series finale that the actor's Pietro Maximoff was really an ordinary man named Ralph Bohner (pronounced as it appears) under the control of Agatha Harkness, but I thought it was amusing enough. So, despite what we may have hoped, it does not appear that Peters is returning as Quicksilver, but is returning for Season 10 of American Horror Story and will also star opposite Kate Winslet in the crime drama series Mare of Easttown for HBO Max.

There are so many other great performers I wish I could have mentioned from WandaVision, such as David Payton as next-door neighbor Herb, or Asif Ali as Vision's co-worker Norm, or Ithamar Enriquez and Victoria Blade from all those creepy, Easter Egg-laden commercial interludes. Perhaps we will be able to put the spotlight on them another day. Besides, as this series has proven well, at Disney+, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is capable of pretty much anything by now.

The following contains spoilers for WandaVision Episode 7, "Breaking the Fourth Wall."

At this point it seems like everybody loves WandaVision. The show is original and creative and fun, but it also is giving fans that Marvel Cinematic Universe fix that so many have been craving for so long. Every week there are questions answered, which is incredibly satisfying, while new questions are created. But there's one question that I have that I haven't seen anybody else ask. How does the general public know so many specific details about what's going on with The Avengers and the various other superheroes in the world?

I mean, I understand that the public would be aware of a lot of the general goings on. There was a big battle in this place, at this time, some superheroes showed up, there was a fight, and this was the outcome. I'm sure all that is on the nightly news. But characters like Darcy Lewis, Jimmy Woo and even Monica Rambeau seem to have very specific knowledge about key events that happen in the middle of superhero battles and even about the heroes themselves. Some of it seems like it would be strange information for them to have.

Wanda's Actions In Avengers: Endgame

The first time I felt this way was in WandaVision's "Very Special Episode." There's a conversation between Darcy, Monica, and Jimmy, where it's mentioned that, if Wanda is the source of the "hex," then it shows that Wanda has significantly more power than she has previously exhibited. Monica responds by bringing up the fact that Wanda very nearly defeated Thanos by herself, and it was only Thanos' decision to "call in a blitz," or "rain fire" as Thanos put it in Avengers: Endgame, that prevented him from being defeated right there.

How exactly does Monica know this? This one brief interaction between two people, one of whom ends up dead, on a battlefield of hundreds. Most everybody else is pretty busy with their own fighting while in battle, so it's unclear if they'd be paying a great deal of attention to what Wanda was up to. In the MCU timeline, the battle with Thanos is incredibly recent. It basically just happened. If somebody is writing a book about the fight, it hasn't been published yet. And Monica has five years of history to catch up on, yet she knows the specifics of this particular interaction in the middle of a battlefield. Did Wanda give an interview to CNN in between Tony's funeral and stealing Vision's body?

In the same conversation, Jimmy Woo mentions that he thinks Captain Marvel was also a major player in the battle, as somebody else who came close to defeating Thanos. Again, how does he know this? Even if Monica, being part of S.W.O.R.D, or Jimmy, being in the FBI, had access to special reports about the events, those reports would have to include these specific details, and how could they?

Things go one step further when Darcy Lewis mentions that she knows that Captain Marvel's power come from an Infinity Stone. This sort of information seems dangerous. Does Carol Danvers really want people to be aware of where her powers came from? Seems like this is just the sort of information a supervillain would love to have. Darcy is an astrophysicist. She's had more experience with the superpowered lot than most, but does the fact that she knows Thor give her access to special info on heroes? Darcy is, for all intents and purposes, a "normal person," and yet she knows where Captain Marvel's powers come from and nothing she's told by Monica or Jimmy is apparently news to her.

Vision Dies Twice

This issue came back with the newest episode of WandaVision, "Breaking the Fourth Wall" where Darcy seems to give Vision a crash course in his own existence. She knows that Vision came about through the melding of Tony Stark's AI Jarvis and a Vibranium Ultron bot. She knows not only that Thanos killed Vision, but that he only did so after reversing time after Wanda had already done the horrible deed herself.

If you go back and watch the sequence in Avengers: Infinity War, Thanos fights his way through several heroes as he works his way through to Wanda and Vision. It's difficult to tell where all the defeated heroes are in relation to Wanda when all this goes down, but it's a wooded area with plenty of trees, bushes, and rocks, that might obscure view and certainly nobody else is in the frame but the three main players, so it's possible nobody else actually sees what happens here except Wanda, and she gets snapped out of existence only a few moments later.

It would be one thing if we were talking about events that happened in New York City, where maybe a news chopper was in the air getting footage (though even that seems insanely risky and I don't believe we see any such thing in the film) but both the battles with Thanos' forces happened in remote locations, meaning it was unlikely there were outside observers. Even if those in the battle did try to give a blow-by-blow account of what happened, these people were under tremendous stress. It's unlikely they'd remember everything or that accounts would even match up. Yet, these three seem certain about what happened exactly. It's not presented as the version they've heard or the rumor that's been going around, this Thanos stuff is presented as fact.

MCU Infodumps Are Getting Awkward

In the end, none of this is that big of a deal; it all just sounds really weird. There's no real reason for these particular characters to have this specific information, and so the fact they do makes it all sound like exactly what it really is: an infodump for the audience in order to help remind everybody of the details they might have forgotten regarding previous films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Somebody needs to make sure the viewer is up to speed in case they missed a movie or just haven't kept tabs.

That's not a bad thing. For every hardcore MCU fans who has watched the movies all several times, there's another who enjoys them, but has maybe only seen everything once, or may not have seen everything at all. In order to get this information across, the powers that be strangely give a lot of details to characters that really shouldn't have it. Unless, of course, they have seen all the movies.

The MCU was gone for a while, but it took almost no time at all in its return for the universe to claw its way back to prominence in the world of pop culture. With the arrival of WandaVision and the wonderful return of Kat Dennings' Darcy Lewis, I'm beginning to think there are so many characters in this universe that deserve more time than they've been given.

Darcy is, of course, on this list, but there are many others. These characters lurk around the MCU and pop up here or there, and perhaps it's time to put them in front of a camera more often to see what they can do.

Darcy Lewis

Before WandaVision, I was ok with not seeing anything involving Darcy Lewis. Everything Kat Dennings' character brought to the table in Thor: The Dark World felt unnecessary and tacked on to me, but after a recent re-watch of the movie, I'm actually thinking it's more like the whole movie was just wrong. Now that I'm seeing her alongside Jimmy Woo in WandaVision and putting her knowledge of astrophysics to good work, I think she's a solid supporting character who could and should work her way back into MCU films where applicable.

Korg

There is no amount of exposure that will ever burn me out on Korg. He was one of the stars of Thor: Ragnarok in my eyes, and the brief bit we get of him in Avengers: Endgame is gold as well. Mainly, I just love that wit Taika Waititi brings to the role, and can't express enough how much we need it. Korg is one of the few MCU characters to have ever made me laugh out loud, and I need him in more stories. Luckily, it's been announced he'll be back for Thor: Love and Thunder.

Flash Thompson

There are many interesting characters in Sony's latest Spider-Man movies, but few are as interesting to me as Flash Thompson. That isn't just because of the tease that he could one day become the superhero Agent Venom, but because the douchey rich kid from Peter Parker's high school seems to have a sad life that the Spider-Man movies only briefly touch on. I've been waiting on a Spider-Man film to bring Flash deeper into the spotlight for a while now, and I'm hoping Spider-Man 3 could be that film. If nothing else, give him enough screen time so that we can get some spinoff rolling!

Stakar Ogord

Stakar Ogord is a character Marvel fans have expected to return at some point following his brief appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, though the details are still spotty on when exactly he may appear. James Gunn has seemingly hinted a return isn't guaranteed in Vol. 3, and while that could be a misdirect, the director may have no immediate plans on bringing the Ravager and his crew back. That's a shame given the crew's history in the Marvel universe (as the original Guardians of the Galaxy) and the fact that Stallone is getting up there in years. I'm hoping we see him in the near future and maybe see him team up with Peter Quill for some big space adventure.

Howard Stark

Tony Stark is dead, and I believe he should stay dead. His father, on the other hand, I'm a bit more flexible. Just kidding, but I have thoroughly enjoyed both Dominic Cooper and John Slattery's portrayals of Tony's father. If there was a time period where a Marvel movie was set in which either actor could reprise the role, I expect to see Howard Stark along for the ride. In fact, I'd be on board with Howard having a big role in some adventure, maybe as a tag-along sidekick with some gadgets to help a hero in need.

Shuri

I don't think there's any overstating how instantly the Marvel fandom embraced Shuri and how much she continues to be in the present. There have definitely been folks wondering if T'Challa's sister will be a part of Disney+'s Wakanda series and maybe even become the face of the Black Panther franchise after Chadwick Boseman's tragic passing. While she's a minor character, for now, it feels there's an opportunity for Shuri and actress Letitia Wright to be a much bigger face in the MCU. I'm all about making it happen however Marvel feels best, but let's make some progress with that.

Wong

Doctor Strange gets a lot of respect amongst the magic users of the MCU, and for a good reason, but let's not forget Wong is no spring chicken. He's been doing his thing longer than Strange and is a formidable opponent if forced to hold his own. Wong's been a trusty sidekick and a character more deserving of a side adventure than to potentially be killed off unceremoniously in a Doctor Strange movie. What I really want to see is a story told by someone who isn't so fresh to the world of magic, which makes Wong the perfect lead guy for that. Let's give Benedict Wong his own adventure or even a Disney+ series of his own!

Sif

Is there another character the MCU has done dirtier than Lady Sif? Her appearances in Thor: The Dark World and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. made it seem like the Thor franchise character had big things in store for the character, but she's been MIA since. It's not for lack of trying though. Scheduling conflicts with NBC's Blindspot kept Jaimie Alexander from being able to reprise her role in Thor: Ragnarok. Kevin Feige has since admitted that Alexander being unable to appear there likely saved Sif's life, and now she will return in Thor: Love and Thunder. Considering Alexander is done with Blindspot, now would be the perfect time to find another project for her character, though there's a part of me worrying she may not survive this next Thor film.

Howard, The Duck

Marvel keeps dangling the Howard the Duck carrot in front of us, but so far,he's had no significant role in the MCU. Personally, I think if they're not going to do anything with him, then stop dangling the carrot! I know Howard the Duck wasn't exactly a smash hit when he was rolled out back in the day, but if anyone could make this duck a blockbuster hit, it's Marvel Studios. I have faith anyway, but perhaps the reason we haven't seen more of him is that the studio lacks faith.

Obviously there is no shortage of Marvel characters who deserve more attention than they've gotten, so feel free to share any personal picks I've forgotten down in the comments. For more on Marvel, I'd love for any WandaVision fans to give their thoughts on any other surprises that may be in store for the Disney+ series down in the comments.

MCU fans have been enjoying just about everything that has to do with WandaVision these days -- especially the return of beloved characters like Dr. Darcy Lewis. While she’s been busy stealing scenes on the Disney+ series, fans have been left wondering if she’ll make an appearance in Thor 4 a.k.a Thor: Love and Thunder. While Kat Dennings has hinted that’s unlikely, she did give fans some hope for future Marvel appearances.

When we first met Dr. Darcy Lewis in Thor, she was a political science student turned intern. She’s certainly had a wild ride since, both on-screen and off. While she didn’t appear in Thor: Ragnarok, she had a good reason: she was off getting her doctorate and becoming an expert in the field of astrophysics. Now, MCU fans are getting plenty of time with Darcy on WandaVision, as she works with Monica Rambeau and Jimmy Woo to uncover the mysteries surrounding the sitcom. Her moments on the series have become fan favorites, which of course has led fans to wonder when we’ll get to see her again.

In an interview with Extra TV, Kat Dennings was asked whether fans can expect to see Darcy in Thor 4. She gave a response that might be a little bit disappointing:

However, there is some reason to feel hopeful, Marvel fans. Kat Dennings also hinted that fans of Darcy have a lot to look forward to in other areas of the MCU:

So even if we won’t get to see Darcy catching up with Jane, Thor and the rest of the Love and Thunder crew, it sounds like Marvel isn’t done with her yet. Of course, now we can’t help but speculate what she’ll be appearing in if it isn’t Thor 4.

There are a few films and series that are due to premiere soon that could feature Darcy. There’s Disney+’s Falcon and The Winter Soldier, which could be a good bet, if only because it’s already been confirmed that other MCU characters will be appearing. Black Widow has been in the can for quite some time, and it shares a screenwriter with WandaVision. So we can’t rule that out, either.

Spider-Man 3 is currently filming, so there’s a chance Darcy could show up there. And she could have even lent her voice to Marvel's What If...?. All things considered, though, given how Doctor Strange 2 seems to be leaning into the multiverse, that seems like one of the most likely candidates for a future Darcy Lewis appearance.

What MCU stories do you think Darcy would fit into best? When do you think she’ll show up again? Let us know in the comments!

It’s been a surprisingly long time since we last saw Kat Dennings’ Darcy Lewis. She made a great impression as one of the key human roles in Kenneth Branagh’s Thor, and then returned two years later for the sequel, Alan Taylor’s Thor: The Dark World, but with Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok mostly being set away from Earth, she didn’t wind up with a role to play in that story. As a result, it’s bizarrely been nearly a decade since we last saw the character. That streak has fortunately now been broken by WandaVision, which features Darcy in an important supporting role – but it is interesting to note that the performance took a bit of an extra effort from the actor, who evidently had to do some research to recapture the snarky scientist’s specific voice.

I had the great pleasure of doing a virtual interview with Kat Dennings earlier this week to talk about her role on WandaVision, and in addition to touching on subjects like getting blipped and Jane Foster’s upcoming transformation into Thor, we also talked about her process getting back into character. As shown in her very first scene on the show, Darcy has not lost a single ounce of her sense of humor since we last saw her, and part of the reason that trademark attitude felt so right is because Dennings took measures to ensure that Darcy sounded like Darcy – with some purposeful alterations. She explained,

When you think about it, this is a super cool extra mile effort made by Kat Dennings in WandaVision. You’d think that the first impulse a performer would have would be to purely replicate their past performance to ensure authenticity, but this is a case where the performer recognized that a character can change significantly over the course of a decade. When we first met Darcy Lewis, she was a political science student hunting for credits through an internship, but now she possesses a doctorate in astrophysics. That kind of life shift is bound to change the way that you converse, and Dennings made what she felt were the appropriate adjustments.

Of course, as noted, what hasn’t changed is that she is still sharp as ever. Her tone may be more professional and doctor-y, but Darcy is not one to ignore her own wit or stifle a cutting comment when there is a good one to be made. In that way she is a great representation of the larger Marvel tone: funny and entertaining, while also appreciating and never undercutting the stakes of the story.

Darcy Lewis’ voice is one that we’re exceptionally excited to hear back in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – and the comeback is only just starting. Kat Dennings may have only made her first appearance on WandaVision in the show’s fourth episode, but she is expected to be a key supporting player going forward, and we can’t wait to watch her dig deeper into the mystery. The next chapter launches on Disney+ this Friday at midnight PST/3:00am EST, and we are counting down the minutes.

WandaVision Episode 4, “We Interrupt This Program,” may have given us a lot of answers, but Kat Dennings' Darcy Lewis and Randall Park’s Agent Jimmy Woo are here to give us even more. They sit down with CinemaBlend’s Eric Eisenberg to discuss the blip, Woo’s (amazing) card trick, and if they know what’s coming next.

Video Chapters

00:00 - Intro

00:17 - Did Darcy Lewis And Jimmy Woo Blip?

01:08 - Randall Park Worked Hard To Perfect His Awesome Card Flip

01:50 - How Agent Woo’s Perspective On Superheroes Has Changed Since Avengers: Endgame

02:47 - What Darcy Has Been Up To Since Thor: The Dark World

03:35 - Why Kat Dennings Rewatched Her Old Darcy Footage While Preparing For WandaVision

04:27 - Randall Park and Kat Dennings Reflect On Their Character’s Unique Connection To The Audience

05:58 - How Much Kat Dennings and Randall Park Actually Knew While Filming WandaVision

07:20 - Kat Dennings Predicts Darcy’s Reaction To Jane Foster Being Thor

In 2019, half of the characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe disappeared. As seen in Avengers: Infinity War, Thanos successfully assembled the full Infinity Gauntlet, and when he snapped his fingers half of all life in existence turned to dust. Everyone eventually came back in Avengers: Endgame thanks to the efforts of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, but still it has left a big question lingering in the canon: who got “blipped” and who didn’t?

Since the end of Avengers: Infinity War and seeing heroes like Black Panther, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, and Nick Fury fade away in the moment, we have gotten confirmation about a number key individuals who did and didn’t go away – including Shuri, The Wasp, Peter Parker’s friends, and WandaVision’s Monica Rambeau – but still there are many whose specific experiences remain unexamined. Kat Dennings’ Darcy Lewis and Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo are two good examples, but at the very least we now have the actors’ own takes on what happened to their characters following the Mad Titan’s snap.

Both Kat Dennings and Randall Park made big Marvel Cinematic Universe comebacks this past week, reprising their respective Thor/Thor: The Dark World and Ant-Man And The Wasp roles on WandaVision, and while their separate arrivals on the show didn’t confirm whether or not Darcy and Jimmy were blipped, I felt compelled to ask them for their thoughts when I interviewed them yesterday afternoon. As seen in the video above, I spoke with them both during a virtual press day for the Disney+ series, and starting with Dennings she confirmed that she believes that Darcy didn’t get blipped:

When you really think about it, Darcy Lewis not being blipped really does make the most sense. Fans may remember that when we first met her in Kenneth Branagh’s Thor she was hanging out with a couple of astrophysicists (a.k.a. Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster and Stellan Skarsgard’s Erik Selvig), but she herself was only an intern, and a political science major to boot. Clearly her time with the God of Thunder made her rethink her life goals, as shown via her increased scientific acumen in Thor: The Dark World, but in WandaVision she is reintroduced as “Dr. Darcy Lewis.”

Getting a degree like that takes a fair amount of time, so it stands to reason that Darcy was not only not blipped, but used the five year gap to further her education and earn her doctorate. Which is objectively awesome.

As for FBI Agent Jimmy Woo, Randall Park was equally curious about whether or not he got blipped. In the making of WandaVision it was something that he too asked the writers about – though he didn’t quite get the same kind of confirmation as Kat Dennings. Said Park,

For those who don’t immediately register the reference, Jimmy Woo’s arrival on the scene in WandaVision sees him do a little sleight of hand trick with his business card – which Ant-Man And The Wasp fans will remember was a little hobby that he was inspired to pick up following his time monitoring Scott Lang.

Joking aside, it certainly would be believable that Jimmy has been around for the last five years just because of how well adjusted he seems in the face of all the craziness that WandaVision is throwing at him. It’s understandable that the official Marvel canon might want to keep his “blipped or not blipped” situation open ended just in case there is a specific idea that a filmmaker wants to pursue, but for now I think it’s safe to take Randall Park’s take on the matter and say that he wasn’t a victim of Thanos.

While it took until the fourth episode of WandaVision for them to arrive, Darcy Lewis and Jimmy Woo both appear to have some key roles to play in the rest of the mysterious Disney+ series, and we can’t wait to see what else they get up to. The next episode will be live on the streaming service at midnight on Friday, and while we have next to no idea what to expect (an extension of the show’s mysterious nature) we can’t wait to watch it unfold.

The next time that we see Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s going to be a game-changer. Not only was it confirmed at San Diego Comic-Con 2019 that the character would be returning in Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love And Thunder, it was officially announced that the film would see her for the first time on screen as Mighty Thor. It’s quite a big change that should garner some fantastic reactions from her friends and colleagues – and while we might not get to see it on screen, Kat Dennings has some ideas about how Darcy Lewis would take it all in.

Marvel fans who have been watching Disney+’s WandaVision know that Darcy Lewis just made her big comeback on the fourth episode of the show last week, and it was while talking with Kat Dennings about the part yesterday during a virtual press day that I took the opportunity to ask her about the developments with Jane Foster. As you can see in the video above, I concluded my interview asking how she thinks Darcy would react to seeing her astrophysicist colleague as the God of Thunder, and she said,

For those who don’t recall, the history between Darcy Lewis and Jane Foster goes back more than a decade, with the former working as an intern for the latter while studying astrophysical phenomena in New Mexico. It was while they were together that they first met Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, who at the time had been banished from Asgard for being kind of a dick. The relationships and events clearly changed Darcy’s whole life, as she went from being a political science major looking for credits to following in Jane’s footsteps and getting her doctorate (as seen in WandaVision).

Given their past together, it most definitely seems appropriate that Darcy’s first reaction to seeing her mentor wielding Mjolnir (or meow-meow) would involve a high degree of confusion.

Unfortunately, it looks like this whole scenario/reaction may be something that will just have to live in our imaginations for the foreseeable future. While it’s true that WandaVision has brought Darcy back for her first appearance since Thor: The Dark World, as of right now there hasn’t been any word of her having a role to play in Thor: Love And Thunder (Kat Dennings’ reaction to my question also seems to suggest that to be the case, as she just seems geared up to see The Mighty Thor just as a Marvel Cinematic Universe fan). That being said, there’s no reason to believe that Jane Foster will only be Thor for one movie, and it’s not outside the realm of possibility that there is a developing unannounced project that could see Darcy and Jane reunited.

Thor: Love And Thunder is now in production, and is currently scheduled to be released on May 6, 2022. And for more of Kat Dennings’ amazing Darcy Lewis, stay tuned in to the rest of the season of WandaVision, which airs new episodes every Friday at midnight PST/3am EST on Disney+.

For the first time since Thor: The Dark World, Kat Dennings is back in the Marvel Universe for WandaVision, an intriguing MCU adventure on Disney+ centered on two Avengers in a sitcom. And hey, it’s been a minute, Darcy… oh, actually, it’s Dr. Darcy Lewis now. In the universe’s early days, Darcy was solid comedic relief for the Thor franchise, but I’ll admit, it’s sort of strange to see the former intern on her own instead of by the side of Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster.

Natalie Portman is expected to check back into the MCU soon with Thor: Love and Thunder after a hiatus similar to Darcy’s. It’s really exciting to see how Marvel is using these Thor characters again, but let’s go back to the beginning for a moment. According to Kat Dennings, her established rapport with Portman may have had something to do with her prominent role in the universe. In her words:

Well, this is sweet. While speaking to the Keep It! podcast, Kat Dennings recalled her early days within the MCU, and apparently she and Natalie Portman knew each other well before being costars on Thor. When the two ended up working together on the 2011 movie, their friendship was so infectious that the filmmakers apparently decided to put Darcy in more scenes than intended. She attributed “friendship magic” to the whole thing, and it’s too cute!

Now it’s been a while since the pair have been seen together as Jane and Darcy, but I always sensed an electric chemistry between those two. It may have even stuck out more than Jane and Thor’s (oops… throwing some shade – not their fault, especially since Dark World is infamously one of the weaker Marvel scripts). It’s nice to know Portman and Dennings are friends in our reality too, so now reunite them in Love and Thunder, Marvel!.

Based on what we know about Chris Hemsworth’s next go-around as the God of Thunder, Kat Dennings is not involved, but who knows? It could still happen. In the movie directed by Taika Waititi, Portman’s Jane Foster is expected to become the Mighty Thor and wield the hammer herself, along with Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie playing a part in the film too.

Kat Dennings made her return to the MCU on Friday for the fourth episode of WandaVision in a mystery-solving episode that started to tie some ends about Wanda and Vision’s stay in a sitcom reality. She also joins Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau from Captain Marvel and Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo from Ant-Man and the Wasp. Supporting characters unite! The next episode of WandaVision premieres on Disney+ next Friday!

10 years ago, the Marvel Cinematic Universe opened the doors to realms beyond Earth in Thor. Among the actors who joined Chris Hemsworth for his first outing as the God of Thunder was Kat Dennings’ Darcy Lewis, who worked with Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster and Stellan Skarsgard’s Erik Selvig in New Mexico. With Dennings finally returning to the MCU in Disney+’s WandaVision, she recently recalled the extreme levels of secrecy that went into her Thor audition, which included having to go to a fake address.

During her visit to the Keep It podcast, Kat Dennings described her Thor audition as “intense,” because when going in, all she knew was that this was a superhero movie. The actress continued:

While Thor was only the fourth movie out of the MCU gate, with Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2 preceding it, this superhero franchise had become quite popular in its early years, especially with the promise that Thor and the other starring heroes of the time would eventually team up in The Avengers. So it makes sense that Marvel Studios wanted to keep as much about Thor secret as possible, including to people like Kat Dennings who were auditioning, which continues to this day. At the same time, I can’t blame Dennings for wondering at the time if she was being kidnapped.

Before Thor, Kat Dennings had appeared in movies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin and The House Bunny, but Thor marked her first time appearing in a blockbuster feature. Dennings reprised Darcy Lewis for Thor: The Dark World, but the immediate years following Thor saw her primarily acting in the CBS sitcom 2 Broke Girls, which also starred Beth Behrs. As such, Darcy hasn’t been mentioned in the Marvel movies since the events of the Thor sequel, and while she did co-lead a book with Erik Selvig called Avengers: Infinity War: The Cosmic Quest Volume Two: Aftermath, that book’s no longer considered canon since Selvig was revealed in Avengers: Endgame to have been snapped away by Thanos.

Which brings us to WandaVision, where Darcy Lewis now holds a doctorate and has been brought into the strange situation involving Wanda Maximoff and her sitcom fantasies unfolding within the town of Westview. Kat Dennings’ character will appear alongside Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo and Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau, but with the character having not yet appeared on the series yet, we have no idea what’s specifically in store for her. As for Dennings’ MCU future beyond WandaVision, the actress expressed doubt that she’ll appear in Thor: Love and Thunder, but that doesn’t mean she couldn’t pop up elsewhere in the years to come.

New episodes of WandaVision drop Fridays on Disney+. As for Thor Odinson, he’ll reunite with Jane Foster and take on Gorr the God Butcher when Thor: Love and Thunder drops on May 6, 2022. Keep track of other Marvel movies on the way with our detailed guide.