20 Years Later, A Beloved American Sitcom Makes a Surprise Return to Streaming Charts

Bryan Cranston as Hal in Malcolm in the Middle sips a slurpy while looking out his car window

Some might say that life is unfair, but life also has a way of creating full-circle moments that are more than fair. Right now, a beloved sitcom of millennials is making its rounds, as FlixPatrol reveals that Malcolm in the Middle is slowly but surely climbing the charts over at Disney+. Clocking in at the eighth spot on the platform’s Top 10, the Frankie Muniz-led show is reaching audiences all around the globe in countries such as Haiti, Panama, Bolivia, Saint Lucia, and more.

Seeing how there’s a sequel series on the way, there’s a good chance that audiences are either seeing what the original production was all about or engaging in the time-honored tradition of a rewatch before the next part of the story arrives.

Filming wrapped for the highly anticipated reboot back in May, so we’re creeping closer and closer to its inevitable arrival on Disney+. Most of the main cast will be reprising their roles, with Muniz returning to the world of the titular character alongside Bryan Cranston as Hal, Jane Kaczmarek as Lois, Justin Berfield as Reese, and Christopher Masterson as Francis.

The only primary member of the Wilderson family who is sitting the revival out is Erik Per Sullivan, who portrayed youngest brother Dewey during the title’s seven-season run. Sharing the reason behind Sullivan’s departure, his co-star, Cranston previously revealed,

“He’s actually going to Harvard. He’s really, really smart, and he’s getting his Master’s at Harvard right now. He said, ‘Oh God, no, I haven’t acted since I was 9 or something. So I’m not into it.’”

But that doesn’t mean that audiences won’t be able to catch up with the character. In Sullivan’s absence, The Silencing and Wyonna Earp alum, Caleb Ellsworth-Clark will step in.

Reunite the Wilkersons in the Reboot

Given that it’s been nearly 20 years since Malcolm in the Middle went off the air, there’s quite a bit of catching up to do with the entire Wilkerson family. The reboot is being billed as a follow-up set of episodes that will catch up with each of the boys — well, men — and see where they’re at today.

Many of them have families of their own, with Cranston’s Hal and Kaczmarek’s Lois now being grandparents. Eager to talk about what the experience was like for him, Cranston said,

“All the boys were around the same age, now, that I was when I started 25 years ago. They’ve got kids of their own. It’s just great to see… I’m asked to do physical comedy on that show and I realized, ‘Oh, it’s been 20 years since I did that.’ I have a few extra restrictions now, so it’s like I’m crawling around. I’m, of course, naked again. That’s no surprise, no surprise at all.”

Get caught up on the series that started it all with Malcolm in the Middle now streaming on Disney+.