Frankie Muniz is speaking candidly about the long-standing silence between him and Hilary Duff. The actor, known for his role in Malcolm in the Middle, recently revealed on The Joe Vulpis Podcast the reason he hasn’t spoken to Duff in over two decades.
The two stars had a close friendship in their early years, but an incident during the filming of Agent Cody Banks in 2003 led to their falling out.
The friendship and fallout
Muniz and Duff became fast friends in the early 2000s, with both of their careers rising to fame around the same time. Duff was starring in Lizzie McGuire, while Muniz was gaining popularity as the lead in Malcolm in the Middle. Their bond even led to Muniz making a cameo appearance on Lizzie McGuire. However, things took a turn when Muniz revealed he had been cast in Agent Cody Banks and discussed the project with Duff’s mother.
“I was on the set of Lizzie McGuire, and I was in Hilary’s dressing room and her mom was there,” Muniz recalled. “Her mom was like, ‘Do you know what you’re doing this summer? What are you doing this summer?’ And I go, ‘Oh, I’m filming this movie where I’m playing like a junior James Bond.’”
According to Muniz, Duff’s mother inquired about the film’s female lead, and by the next day, Duff was reportedly cast in the role.
“Her mom’s like, ‘Guess what? We’re going to be spending the summer together. She’s doing Cody Banks with you. They signed the contract last night,’” Muniz continued. Muniz also admitted that he wasn’t “thrilled about it. And not because I didn’t want it to be Hilary.”
He went on, “I don’t know how much I want to say. I’m trying to think about it because I’ve already said way too much.”
Regrets and possible reconciliation
Despite the tension that followed, Muniz admitted that he regretted letting the situation come between him and Duff. He described feeling upset by the casting change but later acknowledged his regret.
“I regret not just continuing to be friends with her because we had a great friendship for such a long time, and I let her mom… it pissed me off,” he said. Muniz also expressed a desire to reconnect with Duff, stating, “I would love to catch up with her.”
He added, “I would love to even talk about that because I’m sure she doesn’t know any of that happened.” Muniz also revealed that he had not spoken to Duff “since the last day” of shooting Agent Cody Banks. “I’ve not said one word to her since then. So that’s the truth of that,” he said.
Both stars have continued their careers since Agent Cody Banks, with Duff returning to music and Muniz working on a Malcolm in the Middle revival. While there’s no word from Duff yet, Muniz seems hopeful that a reunion could happen in the future.
