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\n Related: <\/span>Shifting Gears’ Tim Allen Had Concerns About Jenna Elfman Age Gap Romance<\/span><\/a>
\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n\t\t\tTim Allen candidly weighed in on his age gap romance with Jenna Elfman on Shifting Gears \u2014 and recalled what concerns he initially had about the fictional relationship. \u201cThe age difference is not much different than my wife and I,\u201d Allen, 72, who has been married to wife Jane Hajduk since 2006, exclusively shared in [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
According to Allen, the feeling was akin to watching a romance scene in the same room as his daughters. While his youngest is 17 and starting to navigate romantic relationships \u2014 \u201cThat\u2019s all they talk about at school,\u201d he quipped \u2014 there\u2019s still an awkwardness around intimate moments when his children are present. (Allen is dad to two daughters: Kate, 36, whom he shares with ex-wife Laura Deibel<\/strong>, and Elizabeth, 17, whom he shares with wife Jane Hajduk<\/strong>.)<\/p>\n\u201cEvery time there\u2019s a kissing scene, everybody gets really quiet in the room,\u201d he told Us.<\/em> \u201cEspecially when [Elizabeth was] a little younger. And that is exactly how I responded [to Buzz kissing Jessie]. I remember when I first read it, I said, \u2018Are you going to show this?\u2019 It\u2019s like Woody\u2019s bald spot. You kind of move them out of the animated thing, and it gets into some larger dramatic questions. Can they get married? And let\u2019s move on from there.\u201d<\/p>\nBuzz and Jessie do end up tying the knot \u2014 sort of \u2014 as their owner, Bonnie, has a pretend wedding for the toys to say \u201cI do.\u201d After seeing the bigger picture, Allen realized that the varying emotions toward Buzz and Jessie\u2019s love for one another are exactly what made the scenes so special.<\/p>\n
\u201cI loved [it] because it affects everybody in the room,\u201d he explained. \u201cYou know, adults, and then kids go, \u2018Eew!\u2019 You got that potpourri of responses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Allen is no stranger to speaking up when it comes to his characters. He previously joked to Pixar after the release of Toy Story 4<\/em> that Buzz should be more relevant to the story, only to find that the writers paid attention to his request.<\/p>\n\u201cI was just kidding around, but it was very startling when I saw the storyboards,\u201d he shared. \u201cI said, \u2018OK, so you took it seriously, that\u2019s interesting!\u2019 That was funny.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Santa Clause<\/em> star has been similarly vocal on the set of his hit sitcom Shifting Gears<\/em><\/a>, particularly when it came to his character Matt, a widow, entering the dating scene.<\/p>\n\u201cOur showrunner [Michelle Nader<\/strong>] put this thing together and they really like the romance. I wanted a car show about a widower to deal with grief. That\u2019s what I wanted,\u201d Allen told Us<\/em>. \u201cI loved Kat Dennings<\/strong> [as my daughter] because she\u2019s the perfect choice. That old dynamic is really where I was at.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n![\"TOY](\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/MCDTOST_EC019-JessieBuzz.jpg?w=1000&quality=78&strip=all\")
<\/div>\u00a9Buena Vista Pictures\/courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\nMatt does eventually find love on the show after meeting Eve (Jenna Elfman<\/strong>)<\/a>, a dance teacher working across the street from Matt\u2019s car shop. While the duo start off as enemies, their sparring matches eventually turn into romantic sparks.<\/p>\n\u201cShe\u2019s so fun to be around and it\u2019s brought out a whole different part of that show and brought a different audience to that show,\u201d Allen admitted. \u201cI\u2019m really out there for the car guys and I make sure the car stuff is fun and exciting. Then the office is cool and now you\u2019ve got romance for the people that want that. Because it turns out the flirting and the actual activity between these two characters is working and I said, \u2018All right, I\u2019ll go there.\u2019 [Jenna is] really good at this and the romance is kind of generated quite by accident.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n
\u201cEvery time there\u2019s a kissing scene, everybody gets really quiet in the room,\u201d he told Us.<\/em> \u201cEspecially when [Elizabeth was] a little younger. And that is exactly how I responded [to Buzz kissing Jessie]. I remember when I first read it, I said, \u2018Are you going to show this?\u2019 It\u2019s like Woody\u2019s bald spot. You kind of move them out of the animated thing, and it gets into some larger dramatic questions. Can they get married? And let\u2019s move on from there.\u201d<\/p>\n Buzz and Jessie do end up tying the knot \u2014 sort of \u2014 as their owner, Bonnie, has a pretend wedding for the toys to say \u201cI do.\u201d After seeing the bigger picture, Allen realized that the varying emotions toward Buzz and Jessie\u2019s love for one another are exactly what made the scenes so special.<\/p>\n \u201cI loved [it] because it affects everybody in the room,\u201d he explained. \u201cYou know, adults, and then kids go, \u2018Eew!\u2019 You got that potpourri of responses.\u201d<\/p>\n Allen is no stranger to speaking up when it comes to his characters. He previously joked to Pixar after the release of Toy Story 4<\/em> that Buzz should be more relevant to the story, only to find that the writers paid attention to his request.<\/p>\n \u201cI was just kidding around, but it was very startling when I saw the storyboards,\u201d he shared. \u201cI said, \u2018OK, so you took it seriously, that\u2019s interesting!\u2019 That was funny.\u201d<\/p>\n The Santa Clause<\/em> star has been similarly vocal on the set of his hit sitcom Shifting Gears<\/em><\/a>, particularly when it came to his character Matt, a widow, entering the dating scene.<\/p>\n \u201cOur showrunner [Michelle Nader<\/strong>] put this thing together and they really like the romance. I wanted a car show about a widower to deal with grief. That\u2019s what I wanted,\u201d Allen told Us<\/em>. \u201cI loved Kat Dennings<\/strong> [as my daughter] because she\u2019s the perfect choice. That old dynamic is really where I was at.\u201d<\/p>\n \n Matt does eventually find love on the show after meeting Eve (Jenna Elfman<\/strong>)<\/a>, a dance teacher working across the street from Matt\u2019s car shop. While the duo start off as enemies, their sparring matches eventually turn into romantic sparks.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s so fun to be around and it\u2019s brought out a whole different part of that show and brought a different audience to that show,\u201d Allen admitted. \u201cI\u2019m really out there for the car guys and I make sure the car stuff is fun and exciting. Then the office is cool and now you\u2019ve got romance for the people that want that. Because it turns out the flirting and the actual activity between these two characters is working and I said, \u2018All right, I\u2019ll go there.\u2019 [Jenna is] really good at this and the romance is kind of generated quite by accident.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>
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