Frankie Muniz is setting the record straight, and the story is juicier than anyone expected. On a recent episode of "The Joe Vulpis Podcast," the "Malcolm in the Middle" star opened up about his early 2000s friendship with Hilary Duff and why the two haven’t spoken since their "Agent Cody Banks" days.
Before "Agent Cody Banks," Frankie Muniz and Hilary Duff were basically the king and queen of early-2000s teen TV. He had "Malcolm in the Middle," she had "Lizzie McGuire," and the two shows dominated family-night television.
Muniz, now 39, recalled that Duff was one of his first real friends when he moved to Los Angeles. “Hilary Duff was probably one of my first friends when I moved to LA to film Malcolm [in the Middle],” he said on the podcast.
At the time, Burbank was the hotbed of young Hollywood. Child actors all seemed to live in the same apartment complex, and even though Muniz didn’t live there, his mom would often drop him off to hang out with friends, and that’s where he met Duff.
The two became close, appearing in each other’s lives both on and off-screen. Duff even asked Muniz to guest star as himself in a 2002 episode of Lizzie McGuire. It seemed like the beginning of a long friendship.
Then came the movie that changed everything.
The “Cody Banks” Drama That Ended It All
When Muniz landed "Agent Cody Banks," the spy-comedy that had him playing a teen secret agent, he had a rare clause in his contract giving him say in who would play his love interest. Initially, the studio had its eyes on "Smallville" star Kristin Kreuk. But that’s when things took a surprising turn.
Muniz recalled that he was in Hilary’s dressing room one day when her mom, Susan Duff — who he called “the epitome of a stage mom” — started asking questions about his next project. When he mentioned "Agent Cody Banks," Susan pressed for details: “Is there a girl role in it?”
The next day, Muniz says Susan showed up again and told him, “Guess what? We’re going to be spending the summer together.” When he asked why, she told him, “Hilary’s doing Cody Banks with you. They signed the contract last night.”
According to Muniz, the studio had gone around him entirely, assuming he’d be fine with it since he and Duff were friends. “Needless to say, I wasn’t thrilled,” he admitted. “Not because I didn’t want it to be Hilary, but because the studio went around me.”
The Fallout on Set
Despite the awkward start, Muniz says the two stayed professional throughout filming. “We had an amazing time on set,” he recalled. He grew particularly close to Angie Harmon, who played Agent Ronica Miles, and called her a “best friend.”
But tension lingered whenever Hilary’s mom showed up on set. “Hilary was so cool, but her mom was intense,” Muniz said. “And I was very sad when Hilary’s mom would come on set.”
Then came the confession that stunned listeners: “If I told you I’ve never talked to Hilary since the last day of filming — I’ve not said one word to her since then, that’s the truth.”
For over two decades, the once-inseparable duo haven’t exchanged a single word.
Looking Back with Regret
Time and maybe a bit of healing have softened Muniz’s feelings. On the podcast, he admitted he wishes things had gone differently. “I regret not just continuing to be friends with her because we had a great friendship for such a long time, and her mom… it pissed me off.”
He also said he’d love the chance to reconnect: “I would love to catch up with her. I would love to even talk about that, because I’m sure she doesn’t know any of that happened.”
Muniz has since traded red carpets for racecars, finding success in motorsports before stepping back toward Hollywood. He’s currently working on a "Malcolm in the Middle" revival project. Hilary Duff, meanwhile, has built a thriving life beyond her Disney roots. She’s starring in "How I Met Your Father," raising four kids, and teasing her first new music in a decade.