Season 1, episode 7 sees Shifting Gears add Jenna Elfman (Fear The Walking Dead) as a reoccurring guest star. Elfman’s character, Eve, is a “spirited choreographer” who owns the dance studio across the street from Matt’s shop. The feud between them is still ongoing when “Picnic” draws to a close, despite Eve and Matt sharing a heartfelt moment in the latter half of the episode.
ScreenRant interviews Jenna Elfman about reuniting with Tim Allen after The Six Wives of Henry Lefay, Eve’s ongoing feud with Matt, and what fans can expect from the Shifting Gears season finale.
Shifting Gears Sees Elfman Creatively Reunite With Tim Allen 17 Years Later
“My first son was five weeks old when I went to do that movie, and Tim and Jane had us over for dinner, and they’re just lovely.”
Jenna Elfman: It’s the first time creatively reuniting since The Six Wives of Henry Lefay with Tim Allenn, yeah. That was 17 and a half years ago. My first son was five weeks old when I went to do that movie, and Tim and Jane had us over for dinner, and they’re just lovely. And when this came up to do, I was like, “Okay.”
I always wanted to see a good sitcom come back. I do love a great sitcom. [It’s] very hard to do, and it’s very hard to get all the pieces right from the acting to the writing and the tone and what it’s about, and Tim’s, like, the perfect person. It does feel like this great reinvention that feels topical to our lives now. I got very excited that when they reached out to me to come play.
One thing that stuck out to me about Eve is that she’s not going to let this guy walk all over her, but when he gets hurt, she also shows kindness. What do you think is most important about creating that balance?
Jenna Elfman: I think the main thing with Eve that Michelle Nader, the showrunner, and I discussed when she wanted me to come do this–and she was a writer on Dharma & Greg and I know her–she kind of wanted to re-look at, “What does a strong woman look like on television? Can we please have all the colors?” [It’s] not just like the strong woman is somehow one-note because that’s a big old lie.
She really wanted to bring all the component parts, all the things that make a woman amazing, dynamic, strong, and [we talked about], “What does that look like? How does that actually manifest?” And it was everything that interests me. So that, I think, is what Eve is. She is confident. She’s had plenty of experiences. She’s creative, she’s a choreographer, dancer, business owner, and she’s confident. She has a confidence to occupy space. She doesn’t apologize for existing and neither does she ask permission to exist or express her opinions. And I just think it’s super cool.
Elfman Teases “Blurry Lines” For Eve And Matt In Shifting Gears
“Sparks can be friendly and sparks can be unfriendly.”
Going off their last interaction, they’re still not on great terms. Is this an ongoing feud we’ll see throughout the season?
Jenna Elfman: Yeah, they get into it a little bit because I think he has some habits, some default settings, and she comes right up against those and hits them in the teeth, as it were, [with] communicating, occupying space, and expressing oneself.I think he likes to control, and she occupies space and those things tend to come into conflict in a very entertaining way. And it was super fun to play. I love doing these scenes with Tim Allen. It’s so fun. I get giddy.
Last night we filmed the third episode, and I was giddy. I was like, “Boy, too bad this is so fun, doing these scenes with you.” He’s so masterful and confident in the scenes and I feel confident in the scenes. Not that I know what to do, I just don’t care if I fail, which gives you a freedom for your own creativity to kind of come out and play. And that’s what happens with he and I in the scenes. We trust each other.
There’s a fine line between love and hate. Is that dynamic something you’d like to see the show tease out a little bit?
Jenna Elfman: I will let them and let you find out exactly what this dynamic is going to be. We’ll see how it goes. Sparks can be friendly and sparks can be unfriendly, and sometimes the lines could get blurry, I suppose.
She has this feud going on with Matt, but she works with his daughter. Could that cause any loyalty issues this season?
Jenna Elfman: I guess that would be, “From whose point of view would the loyalty issue be or the threat be?” What’s great [about] Kat Dennings’ character… I love their relationship, but she also stands up to her dad. But she’s in a vulnerable position in her life and her dad does love her, so with all of the banter and the wit that everyone has, they’re also very warm. We are all warm to each other. I think the way the show sort of jockeys with the wit, sarcasm and genuine humanity [is] what makes it really good.
The Shifting Gears Season Finale Is Full Of Funny And Meaningful Scenes, Says Elfman
“I don’t think anyone should miss it. It’s really good television.”
