ABC says 'politics had nothing to do with' the 'Last Man Standing' cancellation
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Following the cancellation of ABC’s “Last Man Standing” fans were notoriously upset considering its obvious popularity. Now, a network executive is speaking out to assure fans politics had nothing to do with the Tim Allen sitcom getting the axe.
“Politics had absolutely nothing to do with it - we have actors on our shows who have all sorts of different political views,” ABC president of Entertainment Channing Dungey told reporters at the Television Critics Press Association press tour, per The Wrap. She was addressing the recent controversy in which many people believed the show and its star’s conservative-leaning humor and subject matter played a part in it being ripped off the air.
‘LAST MAN STANDING’ CANCELED DESPITE HIGH RATINGS
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Tim Allen is a valuable part of the Disney ABC family and has been for a very, very long time,” she continued. “‘Last Man Standing’ was a show that, several years running, kind of came up to the very end in terms of the renewal, which was the same case this year.”
LAST MAN STANDING - "Halloween" - On Halloween, Mike and Chuck decide to spend the evening watching football instead of passing out candy with their wives. But when Vanessa and Carol start pranking them, the competition is on to see who can out-prank who. Kyle dresses up like his hero, Ed, but Ed has a surprising response to Kyle's imitation of him, on "Last Man Standing," FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30 (8:00-8:31 p.m., ET/PT) on the ABC Television Network. (ABC/Nicole Wilder) KAITLYN DEVER, TIM ALLEN (ABC)
It seems that ABC’s stance on the matter is simply that it could not find a place for the show in the 2017-2018 TV schedule amid a smattering of new content.
‘LAST MAN STANDING’ WON’T BE REVIVED BY CMT, NBC
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In May, the network revealed that it would not be renewing “Last Man Standing” for a seventh season. As Deadline notes, shows get canceled all the time, but it’s somewhat rare for a show that was performing so well. The sixth and final season of the show, which skews more toward a blue-collar audience, was the network’s second most-watched comedy with 8.1 million views, behind only the seemingly untouchable “Modern Family,” which scored 8.7 million in the same year.
“Stunned and blindsided by the network I called home for the last six years,” Allen wrote on Twitter following the announcement, further fueling rumors that his politics played a role in the series’ cancellation. Now, it seems that the network is hoping to quell those rumors.