Shifting Gears’ Kat Dennings felt Tim Allen’s trust “immediately.”

It didn’t take long Kat Dennings and Tim Allen build a real-life connection similar to theirs Shifting gears a father-daughter duo.

“It clicked pretty quickly. We had lunch after I accepted the role and I immediately felt like I could trust him for some reason,” Dennings, 38, exclusively shared in the latest issue Us Weekly. “And he opened up to me very quickly. So I (was) like, ‘Okay, this guy’s letting me down.’

Dennings continued to explain that she and Allen “instant” connection has only strengthened.

“For some reason, it worked pretty immediately — maybe because I grew up watching him for so much of my life, but it just worked. It felt very organic,” she recalls. “And as (filming) progressed, our scenes are so funny, if I do say so myself. Arguments are my favorite scene because I’m not scared. There is no fear for either of us. We just go for it and it’s a lot of fun.”

Shifting gearspremiering Wednesday, Jan. 8 on ABC, follows widowed father Matt (Allen) and his daughter Riley (Dennings), who live together work to restore their relationship. The sitcom celebrates Dennings a return to multi-camera comedy nearly a decade after starring as Max on the hit CBS show 2 broken girls from 2011 to 2017.

“At first I was scared because it had been so long. It seemed to me that I had forgotten everything. Then, once we started shooting the first take, it was like I never left. It was so crazy,” Dennings shared. “I really worked on it. I really thought about it. It felt so organic then. I don’t think I’ve ever stopped working with multiple cameras. I love it, I really do.”

behind the scenes Shifting gears Dennings reunited with the showrunner Michelle Naderwho used to work with her on 2 broken girls and Hulu Doll face. Easter does not stop there, too, featuring Dennings’ former co-star Dollface By Brenda Song — and this is only the beginning.

“Brenda is one of my best friends in real life because we met A doll’s house and then Michelle is ours Shifting gears showrunner And Brenda and I always talked about doing a multicam together. We would joke, “Wouldn’t that be great?” So she did (the guest spot) because we just want to hang out,” Dennings said, teasing the upcoming episode. “I can’t name too many guest stars, but there will be people who will be really incredible. I think Michelle has put in some special little references for me throughout the series.”

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In addition to Dennings and Allen, 71, Shifting gears also the stars Sean William Scott, Daryl “Chill” Mitchell, Maxwell Simkins and Barrett Margolis. There were fans even before the season premiere selecting potential chem between Dennings and Scott’s characters.

“Personally, I think — because it’s one of my favorite things, too — I’m fine with going ahead with it,” she told Us of the potential fictional romance. “The best on-screen relationships are when they span many, many, many seasons, because then it’s fun. Hopefully – if we’re lucky enough to go many seasons – it will take that long.”

Thinking about her time on set Shifting gears So far, Dennings has called the shoot a “magical situation,” adding: “I was talking to a friend and I didn’t know what to do next. She said, “Well, if you could just describe your dream project, what would it be?” I said, “I’d like to do a sitcom again.” I just described this exact scenario. Then the next day I got a call about it.”

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She concluded: “It was shocking. I’m still amazed by it because I feel like I wanted it and here it is. So it happened. And I grew up watching (Tim’s show) Home Improvement, so I was really excited about being his daughter. It was just so fantastic and I feel so lucky.”

To hear more from Dennings about the next chapter of the sitcom, pick up the phone new issue Us Weeklyon stands now.

Shifting gears premieres on ABC on Wednesday, January 8 at 8:00 PM ET before airing the following day on Hulu.