Mere days after ABC picked up the series for a fifth season, 20th TV has sold the off-network syndication rights to Tim Allen comedy Last Man Standing to Hallmark Channel. Last Man Standing will begin airing on Hallmark Channel in 2016.
While the Crown Media owned network tends to be female-skewing, with a plethora of “family friendly” original movies and such original series as Cedar Cove, Where The Heart Is and Good Witch, Last Man Standing is perhaps a natural buy for Hallmark as they already air re-runs of Allen’s 1990s sitcom Home Improvement.
“As our classic sitcom schedule continues to grow and bring in a solid ratings performance, ‘Last Man Standing’ fits right into the model of family friendly entertainment that is at the core of our programming values,” said Crown Media’s Darren Melameth. “Among the cluttered landscape of more risqué television sitcoms, ‘Last Man Standing,’ approaches its portrayal of family life with a humor and attitude that is just right for the Hallmark Channel brand, creating the perfect comedy block starting next year.”
Last Man Standing follows husband and father of three Mike Baxter. When Mike’s wife accepts a promotion at work, he has to step up to the mark and act as the primary parent in his home dominated by his three daughters. Mike tries to inject some masculinity back into his home life, while at work he has to adapt when he jumps from being an on-the-road salesman to the director of marketing for the outdoor sporting goods store he works at in Denver, Colorado.
The comedy series is produced by 20th Century Fox Television and stars Tim Allen, Nancy Travis, Amanda Fuller, Molly Ephraim, Kaitlyn Dever, Christoph Sanders, Hector Elizondo and Flynn Morrison. Jack Burditt created the series and at one time served as showrunner, before being replaced by Kevin Abbott and Tim Doyle. Matt Berry is on-board to serve as EP/showrunner on the just ordered fifth season.
