‘Last Man Standing’ Star Molly McCook Shakes off Mandy Recasting Drama, Celebrates Friend’s Wedding in Hawaii

Molly McCook isn’t letting the criticism of Fox’s Last Man Standing Mandy Baxter recasting get in the way of her bridesmaid duties.

On Tuesday, the actress took to Twitter to celebrate the recent marriage between Pretty Little Liars actress Janel Parrish and Chris Long last month in Hawaii, revealing that she had special duties on the big day: she was a bridesmaid.

“Bridesmaid life,” McCook captioned the gallery of images. “I’ll never forget witnessing @janelparrish & @c_long saying ‘I do’ in beautiful Hawaii. Your love is inspiring and I’m obsessed with you both.”

The Hawaiian nuptials, occurring on Sept. 8, came in the midst of the heated controversy regarding Last Man Standing‘s decision to recast McCook as Mandy in the sitcom, replacing Molly Ephraim in the role. That decision, prompted after Ephraim was unable to return, immediately sparked backlash from fans.

After taking note of the fan outrage, McCook took to Twitter in an effort to quell the upset.

“I know a lot of you have been commenting that you hate that there’s a new Mandy. And I totally don’t blame you. The industry is a funny place,” McCook wrote in a tweet on Sept. 17. “But I’m doing my BEST and making her my own. I know it’s not ideal that she ever had to change. But try to keep an open mind.”

In a tweet on Sept. 27, the actress promised that she understood fans’ anger at the recasting, once again reassuring them that things would work out.

“I SEE your new #NotMyMandy hashtag. You’re right… I’m not THAT Mandy. I’m THIS Mandy. I get it. I promise to love and respect your favorite show and YOU,” she wrote.

Despite her reassurances, fans still went into the episode with a less than optimistic attitude, though tensions seemed to die down following the premiere, which joked about the recasting by having characters comment on Mandy’s new look.

“We hope the audience starts to feel the way we do,” showrunner Kevin Abbott has said. “She’s not doing an imitation of Molly Ephraim playing Mandy, she’s playing Mandy her own way. We put her in a tough situation in that first episode. She’s replacing a beloved actress and we have her in opposition of Mike [Tim Allen] and Eve [Kaitlyn Dever] who are very well loved obviously. We had to do that for the story but she’s not going to be in opposition to Mike in the upcoming episodes and hopefully they can see her shine.”

Last Man Standing airs Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.