Man with a Plan (TV series)
Man with a Plan is an American television sitcom created by Jackie and Jeff Filgo and starring Matt LeBlanc, who also served as an executive producer. The series ran on CBS from October 24, 2016, to June 11, 2020, airing for 69 episodes over 4 seasons. The series was a staple on CBS' Monday night comedy lineup for its first three seasons, before being moved to Thursday nights for the fourth and final season. LeBlanc stars as Adam Burns, a contractor raising three children (Grace Kaufman, Matthew McCann, Hala Finley) in suburban Pittsburgh with  his wife Andi (Liza Snyder), who decides to go back to work as a medical lab technician in the pilot. Kevin Nealon and Matt Cook co-starred through all four seasons as Adam's brother and friend, respectively. Stacy Keach and Kali Rocha recurred as Adam's father and sister-in-law, respectively, and were upgraded to regular cast members in later seasons. In May 2020, the series was canceled after four seasons. Summary. When his wife Andi returns to work, old-school father Adam Burns takes on more of the responsibilities of parenting his three rambunctious children (Kate, Teddy  and Emme). Adam must learn to balance this challenge with running a contracting business with his brother Don, while at the same time dealing with his overbearing father Joe. The series is set in suburban Pittsburgh. Production. Development. On February 3, 2016, the production officially received a pilot order and James Burrows would direct the pilot. The pilot was written by Jackie and Jeff Filgo who was also set to executive produce with Michael Rotenberg and Troy Zien. Production companies involved with the pilot include Double Double Bonus Entertainment, CBS Television Studios, and 3 Arts Entertainment. On May 12, 2016 , it was announced that CBS had given the production, now titled "Man with a Plan", a series order. A day after that, it was announced that the series would premiere on October 24, 2016, by Monday at 8:30pm. On November 14, 2016, CBS picked up the series for a full season of 19 episodes. On January 6, 2017, CBS ordered three additional episodes, increasing the first season order to 22. On March 23, 2017, CBS renewed the series for a second season, which premiered on November 13, 2017. On November 27, 2017, CBS ordered eight additional episodes for the second  season, bringing the total to 21 episodes. On May 12, 2018, CBS renewed the series for a third season which premiered on February 4, 2019. On May 10, 2019, the series was renewed for fourth season, which premiered on April 2, 2020. Casting. Casting for the main cast started in February 2016 with Matt LeBlanc and ended the next month with Matt Cook and Grace Kaufman. On May 13, 2016, it was reported that Jenna Fischer, who was originally cast to play the female lead opposite LeBlanc in the series, had exited and her role would be recast. In 2021 , Fischer asserted on the "Office Ladies" podcast that her role had been recast because test audiences didn't "believe Pam would marry Joey", referring to Fischer and LeBlanc's respective roles on "The Office" and "Friends". On August 1, it was announced Liza Snyder would replace Fischer as the female lead. On August 2, 2016, it was reported that Kevin Nealon had joined the cast in a main role. On September 4, 2018, it was announced that Kali Rocha was promoted to series regular for season 3. Cancellation. On May 6, 2020, CBS announced that "Man with a Plan" had  been cancelled after four seasons. While ratings for the fourth season were satisfactory, the network was reportedly looking to lower costs following the merger of CBS and Viacom that had taken place that same season. The series was expensive to produce for the network, which was a major factor in its decision to cancel the series. The series concluded on June 11, 2020, following a 69-episode run. Reception. Critical response. "Man with a Plan" received negative reviews from critics. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 21%, based on 29 reviews, with an  average rating of 3.29/10. The site's critical consensus reads, ""Man with a Plan"'s flawed, unimaginative writing fails to properly showcase the charm of its unfortunately underperforming lead." On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating, the series has a score 36 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Other media. The first season was released in Region 1, via Amazon's Manufacture on Demand (MOD) service, on November 16, 2018. The second season was released on July 8, 2019. The third season was released on September 22, 2020. The fourth season was released on November  26, 2020. Streaming. All episodes are also available with Paramount+ (formerly CBS All Access) including several episodes which stream live.