Malcolm in the Middle interview with creator Linwood Boomer

When Malcolm in the Middle debuting 26 years ago, it changed the face of TV sitcoms forever. Since the genre’s creation in the 1950s, the art form has almost universally utilized a multi-camera format, in which a handful of cameras follow an actor performing most of the performance in a standing location, often with a studio audience. Then at the turn of the century, Malcolm in the Middlealong with similar events Titus and the original English version Officebroke the mold by finding new ways to bring comedy to TV that felt more like films and less like stage plays.

Malcolm in the Middle very ambitious. Not only does the series take a more film-like approach, but it is also very fast-paced and has the main character regularly breaking the fourth wall with extensive monologues. That last one would be too much for any major star to handle, let alone a child actor.

“The one thing everyone said, including myself, was, ‘We’ll probably never find this kid,'” series creator Linwood Boomer told Polygon. “Malcolm is an impossible role for a 12-year-old to ask to play.”

Boomer found his Bliss in child star Frankie Muniz and went on to create a show so beloved that a quarter century later, Boomer, Muniz and nearly the entire original cast reunited for a four-episode revival. Malcolm in the Middle: Life Is Still Unfair.

This revival is also the reason we ran a previously unreleased interview with Boomer conducted in 2023 for an oral history that never came to fruition. The revival is still in its early stages, which is why it’s not covered here, but Boomer did talk about the origins of the autobiographical series as well as early casting decisions — like how Jennifer Coolidge was almost cast in the series in the role of Jane Kaczmarek, and how Bryan Cranston’s personality shaped his character.

Polygon : Where did the idea come from? Malcolm in the Middle originate?

Linwood Boomer: Throughout my writing career, every lunch, I would tell stories about my childhood. My writer friend said, “It’s a TV show,” but I said, “This is really sad.” This is the story of a child who had absolutely no resources, no friends, his family could not and would not help him. That’s not funny.

But when it came time for me to write another sample manuscript, I thought, “Everyone told me I should write this.” I started three or four times writing some version of my childhood, and it didn’t work. That’s sad for me. I can’t make it funny. Then I got the idea to steal the mechanic they were using The George Burns Show And This is Garry Shandling’s show, that is, talking to the audience. This provides a way for the child to “talk back” in a trustworthy way. To me, it makes me feel like he has one friend. That emotionally unlocked it for me. Then I wrote it very quickly.

Frankie almost supernaturally talented.

How difficult is it to play a character that essentially plays you?

The one thing everyone said, including myself, was, “We may never find this child.” Malcolm is an impossible role for a 12-year-old to ask for – to be this good an actor and of course funny and handle all the technical demands of the script. However, we found Frankie Muniz on the second day of casting. He’s on tape from New York and there’s no denying it. Frankie almost supernaturally talented.

What is it like working with other kids?

Justin Berfield just got the hang of Reese. The words given to him were stupid, and he just had to speak them as if they were clever. He knows what’s funny about that character.

Erik Per Sullivan is perfect for Dewey. It’s very difficult with children that young to get them to act. They can mime and copy dialogue, but he can actually act. He is very simple and natural.

For Francis, Christopher Masterson brings a sense of idealism to his character. This is not just about his desire to destroy things, but because Pope Francis hates bad authority and has poor judgment about what to do about it. Francis truly cares about people, and I’d love for him to be someone you support.

A nine year old kid punching a security guard is objectively hilarious. But a 16-year-old male punching someone is assault.

What about Jane Kaczmarek?

Jane Kaczmarek didn’t audition until about two months into the process. Todd Holland, our director, said, “She should do it,” but I was still looking for other people, like Merilu Henner, Pam Dauber, and Jennifer Coolidge. We had a lot of really good people, and we brought them all to the network, and Jane was right better. I don’t think he was completely out when Doug Herzog said, “It’s gotta be him.” They’re all great, but Jane really fits the part. He has it. It’s not something you can measure.

Jane really understands the character. It was a mother of four who was very tough. No money, no help, almost never even a babysitter. It’s hard to have that level of annoyance and anger all the time, but still look charming. Her chemistry with Bryan is also instant. They were also the only adults, so they hit it off quickly. Their real personalities match their characters’ personalities just as well.

Can you talk about the casting of Bryan Cranston?

While Frankie fits everyone’s preconceptions, Bryan Cranston is the best example of someone who doesn’t fit those preconceptions and shows you something completely different.

It is funny. I’ve written that he’s a very remote and disconnected kind of guy, and it’s not funny. But with Bryan, when he listens to other characters talk, he looks like he’s building a rocket ship in his head and That why doesn’t he listen well. He was going through so much, and he kept being surprised that someone else was talking to him.

Bryan became willing to do anything, so Hal was willing to do anything. It opened things up for me and the writers. Among the writers, it was like, “What do you think he wouldn’t do?” and I said, “You want to see if we can protect it with thousands of live bees?” And Bryan said, “Sure. Go ahead. Sounds fun.”

That’s what all the outrageous stuff is based on – Bryan’s personality.

Also, Hal’s introduction in the pilot, where Lois shaves his back, is real. About every six weeks, my father would stand in front of the newspaper in the kitchen and my mother would ring the bell. And, my mom actually thought throwing it away was a waste, so she put it in the backyard, so the birds could make nests out of it. I remember as a kid thinking, “People are going to know that nests are my daddy’s body hair!”

As the series continues, do you have to take into account changes in their ages?

With Malcolm and Reese, around the third or fourth year, we had to cut back on the debauchery. A twelve-year-old who breaks something is like, “Oh, those kids are crazy.” But the 16-year-olds who destroy things are like, “What’s wrong with those things?” It doesn’t smell the same.

A nine year old kid punching a security guard is objectively hilarious. But a 16-year-old male punching someone is assault.

You left the series before the final season, season 7. Would you share why?

I wasn’t 25 anymore, and it was a 90-100 hour a week job. The way I say it is, “This is 10 years of my life wasted and if I retire now, I have a chance to get those 10 years back.”

And I think I’ve done it. I have a very nice life – lots of freedom and lots of time. I founded a charity called Healing California, which provides free dental and vision care to homeless veterans and people in need throughout California. I made a lot of dough Malcolmand I have always given a decent amount of money to charity, but now I can do more.

Why did the show end?

The ratings are no longer high enough to justify another year. Usually such things are economic decisions made by the people who pay for them.

You’re back to direct the finale. Can we talk about that?

There’s no way I’m letting anyone else direct or produce the final episode.

For the finale, we really wanted to make sure that we didn’t do things like, “The kid who had a lot of money, now he’s poor” and, “The kid who used to be smart really failed,” which you often see on finales and reunion shows. I thought, “Let’s do the opposite.”

We start with Malcolm and Lois’ relationship — that’s always been the biggest thing in the show. Because his parents always seemed a little busy, Malcolm always felt that he had no resources in the family. We want to get over it – that all the bad things that happened to him were for a purpose. Not that Lois made bad things happen to Malcolm, but she would take advantage of him in a very Lois way – “You would be the first president who cared about people like us.”

Do you have any memories from the final you’d like to share?

We would have long monologue rant scenes and Frankie would do it. It’s amazing. He did it in the pilot and throughout the seven years of filming, and he did it in the finale too.

I remember when we did the last episode, we were in the backyard. Frankie is covered in dirt from head to toe, and he does this screaming monologue. Everyone on the crew – most of them were the same people who were there in the beginning – got together and they knew this was the last time, and it was another moment, like in the pilot, where they were all amazed at how talented he was. I cried when I saw that.