While Frankie Muniz is remaining tight-lipped about the forthcoming Malcolm in the Middle reboot, the actor-turned NASCAR driver teased the four-episode revival will be “pretty shocking” to audiences.
In a recent appearance on the Lightweights Podcast with Joe Vulpis, Muniz previewed that fans of the aughts-era sitcom can expect “closure” for the eponymous genius teen, who spent seven seasons trying to come of age in a chaotic household full of loud and oft-dimwitted grown-ups and siblings.
“I think people will be surprised, in a sense, where everybody is and the story. But it’s only four episodes,” Muniz said, adding that the initial idea for a revival — gestating for a decade along with co-star Bryan Cranston — was a two-hour film. “It’s hard to fit in 20 years of stuff in four 30-minute episodes, right? But I think people are going to be very happy with what they came up with.”
Muniz, who is now focused on being a full-time racer, noted the production worked around his NASCAR schedule, and the shoot had to insure him for a hefty price tag, as he had five races during filming.
“I had the best time of my entire life, I’m not exaggerating, filming this reboot, like I loved it so much, way more than I ever thought I could have,” he recalled. “We ended in May, and I haven’t talked to anybody since, you know what I mean? I’ve been gone. I’ve only been home, I think, like 12 days since the beginning of the year. So I’m just always crazy, and I think next week, I’m going to have time. I’m going to reach out [to the rest of the cast].”
The Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actor also echoed previous sentiments about “how quickly [the cast] just jumped back into being a family.”
Winning seven Emmys, a Grammy and Peabody when it aired from 2000 to 2006, the influential single-cam comedy was a hit for Fox and admired by critics and audiences alike. The revival’s plot will feature a grown-up Malcolm, who has a wife and daughter, drawn into his parents’ chaos once more for Hal (Cranston) and Lois’s (Jane Kaczmarek) 40th wedding anniversary party.
Previously, Muniz reflected on wrapping production for the Disney+ limited reboot: “I’m still reeling. This experience was straight-up incredible—like stepping back into Malcolm’s wild world but with all the love and chaos cranked to 11. Reuniting with the cast, getting to know some new characters, laughing till it hurt, and making new memories on set felt like a dream I didn’t want to wake up from. It went by so fast, like a blur of perfect moments. I wish it could go on forever,” he wrote in part.
Watch the full interview below:
