ABC has renewed Last Man Standing for a fifth season, according to Deadline. This may come as a surprise to those who didn‘t think that ABC and 20th Century Fox TV could hammer out the necessary negotiations to renew the sitcom. It may also be surprising to everyone oblivious to the fact that Tim Allen has had his own show on ABC for the last four years, although it’s not as disorienting as stumbling onto an episode of Last Man Standing and wondering what happened to Al Borland.
Last Man Standing is part of ABC’s dominant Friday night lineup, which also includes Shark Tank and 20/20. The renegotiation also sees co-executive producer Matt Berry stepping into the showrunner seat, and raises the series’ total episode count. This will qualify it for syndication, further confusing viewers expecting to see Wilson’s bucket hat peering over the fence and dispensing sage advice to his growling, hooting neighbor.