After formally picking up to series Shifting Gears, starring and executive produced by Tim Allen, ABC has opted not to proceed with its other multi-camera comedy pilot, Forgive & Forget, starring and exec produced by Ty Burrell.
The pickup of Shifting Gears was fully expected. While not too surprising, the pass on Forgive & Forget was not.
ABC does have comedy shelf space: By the end of this season, the network will be down to one returning series, flagship single-camera half-hour Abbott Elementary, as The Conners is set for an abbreviated seventh and final season.
Both Shifting Gears and Forgive & Forget are in the cost-effective multi-camera format and feature popular ABC comedy stars in Home Improvement and Last Man Standing‘s Allen and Modern Family‘s Burrell.
As Deadline reported, ABC was so determined to get Allen back on the air that it developed two scripts for him to choose from. The network proceeded with a series pickup even as the pilot’s writers, executive producers and showrunners Mike Scully and Julie Thacker Scully have stepped down, and a role in the pilot is being recast.
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Meanwhile, Forgive & Forget brought in Modern Family co-creator Christopher Lloyd to consult, reuniting with Burrell. But the project also faced challenges. The role of the son was recast, and, after a promising table read, the pilot came in OK, I hear. With ABC’s bar for comedies very high as the network has shifted its business to drama procedurals and unscripted, that probably was not enough.
And then there was the subject matter as Forgive & Forget deals with Alzheimer’s.
From Punky Brewster duo Eugene Garcia-Cross and Robin Shorr and 20th Television, the project follows perennial life of the party Hank (Burrell). After an unexpected diagnosis, Hank reconnects with his responsible adult son Ben in hopes of making new memories together.
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I hear the topic, while handled deftly, might have felt a little darker for broadcast TV. Forgive & Forget was inspired by Garcia-Cross’ experiences of caring for a parent with Alzheimer’s, and the show hoped to destigmatize a disease afflicting millions.
While the pilot is not moving forward, Disney remains committed to getting a series with Burrell going, and I hear talks are underway for other opportunities.
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