‘Last Man Standing’ Loses Molly Ephraim And Flynn Morrison, Fans React To Major Shake-Up
Last Man Standing was picked up by Fox after it was canceled by ABC this past spring. Season 7 just recently got an official premiere date as well. The revival is set for September 28 in its usual time slot of 8 p.m. on Fridays. However, there is a major shake-up as two key actors are not returning to their roles this fall. TV Line has reported that Molly Ephraim and Flynn Morrison are not coming back to their original characters on the show and both are set to be recast.
While Morrison’s role as Mike Baxter’s grandson, Boyd, is a bit easier to recast because of his age, Ephraim’s character of Mandy has fans of Last Man Standing in an uproar. She is the snarky middle daughter of the three Baxter girls. LMS fans believe this is a significant loss for the Friday night comedy.
In addition, Kaitlyn Dever, who plays the youngest girl Eve, has yet to sign on the dotted line. Reports indicate that she is still in negotiations with Fox, but it will be on a recurring basis if all goes well. Eve’s part-time appearances will most likely be explained as her being away at the Air Force Academy and returning for home visits periodically.
There have been many speculating on why Molly Ephraim has chosen not to continue on Last Man Standing. Whatever it happens to be, most people have agreed that the 32-year-old actress will be sorely missed.
When it's #TakeYourChildToWorkDay and they don't agree with how you run things. #LastManStanding pic.twitter.com/tNcs2VcSat
— Last Man Standing (@LastManStanding) April 28, 2017
Many fans are against the prospect of a recast for Molly Ephraim. The actress is well-loved and is said to be irreplaceable on the show. Comments such as this reveal that having someone else in the role of Mandy Baxter will be a hard pill to swallow.
“I really hate to hear this. Molly did such a great job with the Mandy character. I’m not sure she can be replaced. She really did have the best lines and her delivery was so perfect!”
Some fans have indicated that they would rather just have Ephraim’s character off somewhere else rather than her being recast. The thing is that she and Kyle are newly married, and Christoph Sanders is returning to his role as Mandy’s husband, Kyle. That may be a little hard to explain, especially if she never makes it home at all during the season.
Last Man Standing will go on with the rest of the original actors this fall. In addition to Tim Allen as the head honcho Mike Baxter, Nancy Travis (Vanessa Baxter), is heading back. The rest of the gang, Amanda Fuller (Kristin), Jordan Masterson (Ryan), Hector Elizondo (Ed), and Jonathan Adams (Chuck) are all slated to return to their original roles as well.
Stay tuned to see who will be recast in the roles of Boyd and Mandy. Flynn Morrison did an amazing job as the Baxter grandson. Fox may go with an older actor for the new season.
