Frankie Muniz is getting candid about returning to the small screen for the four-episode “Malcolm in the Middle” reboot “Life’s Still Unfair,” describing the experience as the first in his entire life that he was “happy to call myself an actor.”
“I’ve always been like, ‘Oh yeah, I act but I also do these other things too,’” the “Agent Cody Banks” star said in an interview with People. “It was just really fun and a really cool experience, so I’m hoping that everyone loves it for sure.”
Muniz starred in the original 2000 sitcom as the titular boy-genius Malcolm Wilkerson alongside Bryan Cranston (Hal Wilkerson) and Jane Kaczmarek (Lois Wilkerson). The show ran for 151 episodes across seven seasons until 2006.
While Muniz reflected fondly on the experience, he admitted he was unsure of what the dynamic would be on set 20 years later.
“I was a kid,” Muniz said. “I was like 13 to 20 when I was on the show and I just kind of showed up and was excited to be there and said the words that were on the paper and it worked. As an adult, you tend to overthink things … and you put more pressure on yourself as well. So I didn’t know what it was gonna be like — if it was going to be easy to be Malcolm, if it was gonna be awkward back with the cast.”
Quickly, though, Muniz’s fears were dissuaded. “Not to sound like cliché, but it was as if not a single day went by,” he continued. “All of us — every single person — like instantly fell back into their characters with, I’m talking the first table read.”
The “Big Fat Liar” star added that filming for the upcoming reboot was “probably one of the best times I’ve ever had on a set,” largely because of the alleviated pressure that came with working on a project he knew fans would appreciate.
“Twenty years ago, you film the first season, no one’s ever seen it, you don’t know if they’re gonna like it, you don’t know how people are gonna react to it,” Muniz said. “And then to have your seven years of success with it and now 20 years later, I can go anywhere in the world and people know Malcolm, right? They know the show, they love the show. They tell me how much it affected their lives and how much it meant to their families, how it brought them closer together.”
Audiences can expect to stream “Malcolm in the Middle: Life’s Still Unfair” on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ in 2026. Read Muniz’s full interview on People.
