If you haven't already been watching, ABC’s Shifting Gears is a show that’s turning heads and shifting into high gear with its blend of humor and heart for the small screen. Whether it's the laugh-out-loud moments or the touching scenes that remind us what truly matters, Shifting Gears is a fresh, fast-paced show that’s all about a family that's finding their way.
Shifting Gears is led by Tim Allen (Home Improvement, Last Man Standing) who portrays Matt Parker, a widower who runs an auto shop and reluctantly takes in his estranged daughter, played by Kat Dennings (2 Broke Girls, Dollface), and her two children, Carter and Georgia played by Maxwell Simkins and Barrett Margolis, respectively. Seann William Scott plays Gabriel, an odd but lovable mechanic who works at Matt's shop, and Daryl Chill Mitchell stars as Stitch, a military vet and a friend of Matt's.
If you want to learn more about why this show should be your next tune-in, The Parent Watch got the opportunity to chat with Margolis, the witty and screen-stealing granddaughter of Allen's character. Her portrayal of Georgia is already winning the hearts of viewers and we found out how the actress feels about Georgia, the fun (and challenges!) of experiencing change when you're young, and what happens in between shooting episodes.
When playing Georgia, do you find that you had any similarities to her? When you first got the script. Is there a special process for getting into character for her?
BM: She's definitely a little bit sassy, and sometimes I could be a little bit sassy, so sometimes I just have to step into that little sassy character and have a little bit of attitude, but she's still super sweet. You can tell she loves her family, and I love my family, and I can be sweet. I just had to put those all together and make Georgia.
I can't even imagine being next to Tim Allen and Kat Dennings the entire time. I'm sure that there's so much laughter going on. What's it like to have Kat play your mom? And what's the dynamic like when you're on set together?
BM: She's so sweet and caring. If I ever have any questions about any of her acting experience, she always provides an answer. She's just so nice, and I couldn't have asked for a better on-screen mom.
The show is centered around family and adapting to new environments. How do you see Georgia adapting to major changes potentially through the rest of the series? Any advice for kids who are going through major changes themselves, whether that's a move to a new school or a new home?
BM: It's a lot to adjust to for Georgia and Carter because they're moving away from their dad, who they both lived with for their whole lives, and they're moving in with their grandpa to somewhere new. So that's definitely hard. And being someone who has moved for it, it's definitely just you got to be yourself because I feel like that's the easy way to make friends because your friends will love you for who you are. They don't want to see anybody different and rely on family. You can tell Georgia, she's a super tight bond with her brother and her mom, and definitely an extra big special bond is forming with her and her grandpa. So definitely family is important because they'll always be there for you. Just be yourself and don't be afraid. You're not going to really get it if you hold back. So you just got to go for it.
I can even take that advice and use that in my life! You mentioned Maxwell who plays Carter, and the relationship and bond between them. What do you guys like to do for fun in between shooting?
BM: Something fun that happened this episode was in the sixth episode, you'll see that Carter has a Nintendo Switch. We were actually able to get a few games on there. We play in-between scenes. It was the third episode, we got to play with a fidget spinner off on the side, so we were doing cool tricks with them, and that was definitely fun. Maxwell is just so nice and so easy to talk to, so we definitely talk a lot.
When you're playing a fictional character, having a brother-sister relationship, it's so nice to hear that you guys off-set are also in that brother-sister dynamic. Additionally, as you talk about the episodes, do you have a favorite one that you shot?
BM: Definitely the pilot because that was when it all started. I met everyone, and that was just a big moment for me. The episode we just filmed was the Valentine's Day episode. This was definitely an episode where you could see the bonds between the characters really shining through. You could tell with my and Max's relationship in this one. Also, I eat a lot of candy, and I love candy. Also getting to work with Nancy Travis was really cool. She's amazing!
I would have eaten all of the candy as well. What do you hope that families and young people who are watching the show take away from it?
BM: That's a good question: 'You can do it!' Georgia's family is definitely working through some hard stuff, being divorced, losing not having a dad, and also definitely bonding with your grandpa, which you haven't seen for a while. Definitely also with our grandma, there are some episodes about grief. There's a lot of things going on. It's a comedy, but they're still able to smile and make jokes. It is really nice to see. Just push through and you got this. You have your family and that's all that matters.
Here's a clip of Barrett in-action as Georgia on ABC's official YouTube channel:
The next Season 1 episode is 'Valentine's' which airs 2/12 on ABC at 8/7c. Catch up with the series on Hulu before the next episode drops!