Hilary Duff Says Animated Lizzie McGuire Character ‘Lives Rent-Free’ in Her Head
Hilary Duff has finally given fans a definitive answer on the long-awaited Lizzie McGuire reboot — and it comes with a twist.
The 38-year-old confirmed on a recent podcast that a revival isn’t happening anytime soon, but she floated a surprising timeline that could give the show’s devoted fanbase something to look forward to decades from now.
During the March 9 episode of the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast, Duff addressed the question fans have been asking for years: Is the Lizzie McGuire reboot ever actually going to happen?
“I can say that, right now, it’s not in the cards,” she said, alluding to her busy schedule. “I have a world tour to go on and that’s going to take me a few years, I think.”
Duff is focused on music right now, and Lizzie will have to wait. But the conversation took an unexpected turn when she started talking about what age might actually work for the character.
She said she was always “really excited” to think about Lizzie in her 30s “and going through 30-year-old things,” but now she “can’t really see her at 40.”
“Maybe I could start to see her around 55 (or) 60, and I think that’s interesting,” she added.
So the door isn’t closed on Lizzie McGuire. Duff is saying the timing has to feel right for the character — and she can picture a version of the show set roughly two decades from now.
The Failed Disney+ Revival Still Stings
Lizzie McGuire ran for 65 episodes on Disney Channel from 2001 to 2004. The Lizzie McGuire Movie was released in 2003.
After its original run, Disney wanted to transition the show into an ABC spinoff that followed Lizzie into high school, but it fell through.
Then came 2019. At the D23 Expo, it was revealed that Duff was in talks to reprise her role for a show about Lizzie McGuire in her 30s on Disney+, with original creator Terri Minski returning as showrunner.
The announcement sent fans into a frenzy.
Unfortunately, the series lasted only two episodes before being canceled in 2020.
Duff announced the cancellation in an Instagram post on Dec. 16, 2020.
Having Minski back as showrunner had made the revival feel like it was being done the right way, which made the cancellation hit that much harder for fans who had followed the project from its announcement.
It Took Hilary Duff a Decade to ‘Make Peace’ With Lizzie McGuire
Beyond the reboot discussion, Duff has opened up recently about her complicated relationship with the character that made her a household name.
During a March 3 appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show, Duff revealed that it took a solid decade to “make peace” with her Lizzie McGuire character.
“It’s weird to play a character that people fall so in love with that doesn’t grow up. She stays that age and then I grew up,” she told Barrymore.
Millions of kids grew up watching Lizzie, but Duff’s experience was the inverse: she grew up while the people around her wanted her to stay frozen in time as a 13-year-old navigating middle school.
Duff went on to credit that tension as a big reason why she wanted to become a pop star.
“I think that was why I wanted to be a pop star. The second I finished filming Lizzie, I was like, ‘Cool, I don’t want to be called that anymore,” she said.
After years of wrestling with that identity, Duff has arrived at a different place. She told Barrymore that she’s now “obsessed” with Lizzie.
“I get to join the fandom and be excited like everybody else, even though I was her,” Duff said. “But for a while, it was a hard thing to be changing and evolving, but everywhere I went I was this to people.”
A ‘Would You Rather’ Moment That Says It All
Duff’s appearance on Shetty’s podcast also delivered a lighter moment that captured where she stands with Lizzie now.
During a ‘would you rather’ round, Shetty posed this question:
“Would you rather have to say, ‘Hi, I’m Hilary Duff and you’re watching Disney Channel,’ every time you introduce yourself or have the Lizzie McGuire animated character in your head at all times?” Shetty asked.
Duff didn’t hesitate.
“Oh, she lives in there rent-free baby,” Duff replied.
“I think I would have her living — I mean, I’ve accepted her in my head, so I’m choosing the latter,” she added.
The reboot isn’t happening right now. Duff hasn’t buried the idea, though — she’s pushed the timeline.
Whether that eventually means a show about Lizzie at 55, a movie about her reinventing herself later in life, or something else entirely, Duff has left the possibility open.
For now, fans wait — which, at this point, they’ve had plenty of practice doing.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
