First scene in first Fox episode will be a treat for hardcore fans

Complete Coverage: 2018 TCA Summer Press Tour

Beverly Hills, Calif. — While Roseanne Conner’s affinity for President Trump has defined the Roseanne redux, in part, the Last Man Standing reboot on Fox won’t likely touch on Trump.

“I don’t think we’re gonna comment specifically on Trump,” said Kevin Abbott, executive producer and showrunner Thursday at Fox's 2018 TCA summer press tour presentation.

“Oh yes we will!” quipped star Tim Allen.

Allen deflected a question about how the actor’s support for President Trump informs his character. “I’m not the character I play,” he said, adding that people who want to know the true Tim Allen should see his standup show in Las Vegas.

Related: Fox to Debut Competition Series ‘The Masked Singer’ in January

Earlier in the day, Gary Newman, chairman and CEO of Fox Television Group, described Allen’s Mike Baxter character as having a “fairly centrist viewpoint.”

Allen said his Trump allegiance likely was not a factor in ABC canceling Last Man Standing in 2017, as some have posited. ABC would have told him as much if it was true, he believes. “I think it was a financial decision on ABC’s part,” he said.

Allen said he was shocked when ABC cancelled Last Man Standing after six seasons. “I thought it was done very poorly,” he said.

Related: ABC Picks Up ‘Roseanne’ Spinoff Straight to Series

Asked about how Roseanne’s success with viewers might bode for Last Man Standing, Abbott wasn’t seeing a connection. “The only similarities we have with Roseanne is, we are a family sitcom,” he said, “and the central character has a more conservative point of view.”

Roseanne covered “issues of the week,” he added. “We really don’t do issues of the week.”

Exec producer Matt Berry spoke of the sizeable response from fans of Last Man Standing when it was axed, including petitions. He called the response “humbling.”

The first scene of the first show on Fox is “a little present” for hardcore fans, Berry said.