Shifting Gears Season 2 has already packed in loads of recognizable visitor stars within the fall 2025 TV schedule up to now, beginning massive with a trio of House Enchancment reunions for Tim Allen. Now, one other acquainted face from the small display screen is about to affix the present within the 2026 TV schedule, and followers of Hallmark’s Christmas film schedule will undoubtedly acknowledge him. Actually, he is so carefully related to merry and brilliant TV motion pictures that the one bummer about his Shifting Gears casting is that he is lacking the upcoming Christmas episode. Put together to welcome Luke Macfarlane to the ABC sitcom!
Luke Macfarlane, who starred in fifteen Hallmark motion pictures earlier than attending to play Santa Claus, joins Shifting Gears to play Sam Parker, in keeping with Deadline. Whereas this might be Macfarlane’s first episode of the ABC sitcom, Sam has been talked about quite a lot of instances on the present because the son of Matt (Tim Allen) and brother of Riley (Kat Dennings). The brand new character is a Navy hero, and is about to look as a visitor star later this season.
The Platonic actor reacted to his casting announcement on Instagram, writing “Glad to be a member of the household.” No set date was introduced for his debut as a visitor star, however with simply the Christmas episode left earlier than winter hiatus begins, it is a secure wager that Sam’s arrival will occur within the new yr after the vacation season has wound down. Hallmark remains to be the place to be to see Luke Macfarlane celebrating the season.
Shifting Gears remains to be getting festive to finish the autumn, although, and with one other notable visitor star: Higher Issues star Pamela Adlon, who’s on board as Gabe’s (Seann William Scott) mother. Known as “Nutcracker,” the Christmas episode/fall finale will function the Parker household studying that the vacation season is not essentially stuffed with miracles in relation to romance, with skinny ice for Matt and Eve (returning sitcom star Jenna Elfman), Gabe needing Riley’s assist for Amelie to impress his mother, and Carter additionally requiring help in relation to his “promposal.”
Personally, I am most curious concerning the promposal just because highschool promenade normally takes place within the spring, so Carter is presumably both planning method forward for the brand new yr or desiring to lock in a date early with many months to spare. Nonetheless, the vacations are a time for a lot of households to rejoice collectively, so I am hoping we not less than get a point out of Sam to set the stage for Luke Macfarlane’s arrival as Matt’s son in 2026. If we won’t get the actor to rejoice Christmas on ABC as an alternative of simply Hallmark, let’s get a shout out to his new character!
The Christmas episode of Shifting Gears, which can be the autumn finale, airs on Wednesday, December 10 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC forward of the Abbott Elementary fall finale at 8:30 p.m. ET. Tim Allen”s newest sitcom will then go on break till returning with the winter premiere on Wednesday, January 7 within the ordinary time slot. Within the meantime, you may all the time revisit earlier episodes streaming with a Hulu subscription.
