Shifting Gears Season 2 has already packed in plenty of recognizable guest stars in the fall 2025 TV schedule so far, starting big with a trio of Home Improvement reunions for Tim Allen. Now, another familiar face from the small screen is set to join the show in the 2026 TV schedule, and fans of Hallmark's Christmas movie schedule will undoubtedly recognize him. In fact, he's so closely associated with merry and bright TV movies that the only bummer about his Shifting Gears casting is that he's missing the upcoming Christmas episode. Prepare to welcome Luke Macfarlane to the ABC sitcom!
Luke Macfarlane, who starred in fifteen Hallmark movies before getting to play Santa Claus, joins Shifting Gears to play Sam Parker, according to Deadline. While this will be Macfarlane's first episode of the ABC sitcom, Sam has been mentioned a number of times on the show as the son of Matt (Tim Allen) and brother of Riley (Kat Dennings). The new character is a Navy hero, and is set to appear as a guest star later this season.
