Kat Dennings came back to the world of network TV sitcoms last year, and the second season wrapped recently in the 2026 TV schedule with a romantic finale cliffhanger for Riley. Unfortunately for fans who would prefer more new episodes on ABC to revisiting older ones with a Hulu subscription, the comedy (also starring Tim Allen) has not yet been renewed. As the wait continues, the 2 Broke Girls co-creator opened up about Dennings' skills as a comedic leading lady after their six seasons working together on CBS.
Michael Patrick King was the co-creator and showrunner of 2 Broke Girls during its six-season run on CBS from 2011 - 2017, and the show proved both Kat Dennings' and Beth Behr's talents as comediennes. Ahead of the return of The Comeback (which King co-created for HBO with Lisa Kudrow) later this year, I spoke with King at SCAD TVfest. I had to ask about Dennings' sitcom skills as the wait began for news about the future of Shifting Gears, and he told me:
I think Kat Dennings has such depth. A lot of people do comedy like it's a cartoon. She does comedy like it's a painting. It has a reality. She has a gravitas to her, and she's really wickedly smart and funny. So yeah, Kat Dennings is going to work as long as Kat Dennings wants to work.
While it still remains to be seen if Kat Dennings will be back as Riley opposite Tim Allen as Matt and Seann William Scott as Gabriel, the 2 Broke Girls boss certainly has the expertise to say whether or not the Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist star has what it takes to keep delivering comedy.
2 Broke Girls ran for nearly 140 episodes over six seasons, which is hardly guaranteed for a network TV comedy nowadays. It was also the show that established Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs as sitcom stars, likely contributing to Behrs having the opportunity for The Neighborhood after wrapping her time as Caroline. Michael Patrick King shared that he's "greatly gratified that they both found other homes on television because they were stars."
The long run of the CBS sitcom also meant that Shifting Gears' co-leads both came into the new show with sitcom success behind them. Tim Allen of course has Home Improvement and Last Man Standing to his name; Kat Dennings has 2 Broke Girls and the enthusiastic support of her former showrunner.
But what do we know about the future of Shifting Gears? Unfortunately, not much, as there were no interviews in the wake of the Season 2 finale that gave any hard details about plans for a third season. Showrunner Michelle Nader did speak to TVLine about the ABC comedy getting a higher episode count for the second season compared to the first. Asked whether there's an episode count that feels ideal to her if there is a renewal, Nader said:
I really left behind any fixed expectations a long time ago. I truly mean this: As many as they give us, I'll fill them to the brim. If it's 10, if it's 13, if it's 22 — that's great. The new normal is shorter orders, so I try to pack as much as possible into every episode because you just don't know how many you'll get. It does help to know the number up front so I can plan the season.
That's certainly not confirmation that Dennings will be back to resolve Riley's cliffhanger in the fall, but the hope is clearly still there that Shifting Gears has another season in store. Given that many other network TV shows won't be wrapping their current seasons until May, fans may have a while yet to wait before getting renewal (or cancellation) decisions from ABC.
Personally, after Tim Allen got a Home Improvement reunion in Season 2 and with The Neighborhood ending, my fingers are crossed for Beth Behrs to appear as a guest in a third season. In the meantime, you can always revisit the first two seasons of Shifting Gears on Hulu, and stream all six seasons of 2 Broke Girls on The Roku Channel.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
