The show originated from writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who initially conceived the concept as a feature film before pitching it to their longtime collaborator Will Forte.

Will Forte was partially inspired by the documentary series Life After People, and crafted his treatment for the show over a single weekend before pitching it around Hollywood, mainly to cable and internet services since he believed a broadcast network would be stricter on content.

While writing the show, the creative team also discussed films like The Omega Man, I Am Legend, and 28 Days Later as influences.

The main character's name, Phil Tandy Miller, is based on the names of the show's two executive producers, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

Jacob Tremblay portrays a young version of Phil, appearing to his brother Mike in multiple visions in the episode 'Pitch Black'.

Filming the series was challenging because the crew had to maintain silence and avoid picking up ambient sounds like distant cars, given the post-apocalyptic setting with virtually no other people or civilization noise.

The main recording location for the series was a 20th Century Fox studio in Chatsworth, California.

Dan Sterling joined as executive producer for the second season and took over as showrunner from Will Forte, who had run the show during its first season.

The one-hour series premiere drew 5.75 million viewers with a 2.4 rating among adults 18-49, making it the highest-rated broadcast series of the evening in that demographic.

The series ended on a cliffhanger meant to be resolved in a planned fifth season, but Fox canceled the show just four days after the fourth season finale aired; creator Will Forte later revealed the planned continuation would have involved the survivor group unknowingly infecting and killing an underground colony of survivors as asymptomatic carriers.