Lizzie McGuire stars Jake Thomas and Davida Williams were surprisingly live on TV on Wednesday.
The pair, who rose to fame playing Lizzie’s little brother Matt McGuire and her nemesis Claire Miller respectively, were interviewed together on Today Extra.
The duo looked almost unrecognizable during the chat, having grown up on screen and are now both in their 30s.
Jake and Davida now co-host a podcast called Living Lizzie, a Very McGuire Podcast, talking about their time on the hit Disney show.
They also shared their thoughts on the botched reboot that was reportedly halted due to creative differences.
Lizzie McGuire stars Jake Thomas and Davida Williams were surprisingly live on TV on Wednesday. Jake is depicted in the show as Lizzie’s little brother Matt McGuire, alongside Hilary Duff
“I was sad because people were very excited about it, but things happen and we had no control over them,” Davida said.
Jake added: “We shot two episodes at the end of 2019 but it wasn’t until January that we were told it was on hold and then Covid happened and it all fell apart.”
“They were reformatting things and then a lot happened… it’s a lot of different people coming together to make the perfect version.”
The duo looked almost unrecognizable during the chat, having grown up on screen and are now both in their 30s. Davida is pictured in the hit show
In May 2021, actress Hilary Duff, who is known for her role as Lizzie, admitted that she is “very protective” of her character and has really fought to bring her back to life despite a botched reboot with Disney+.
The 33-year-old actress spoke of the many “creative discussions” between the network and producers for an evolved Lizzie before talking about her new starring role in How I Met Your Father during a video interview for SiriusXM’s Jesse Cagle Show.
“That’s been a bit of the struggle,” she said of making the updated show. “Like I don’t want to call it a struggle because everyone has a very loving relationship between, you know, me and Disney and, but that’s been the point.
The pair, who rose to fame playing Lizzie’s little brother Matt McGuire and her nemesis Claire Miller respectively, were interviewed together on Today Extra
In the summer of 2019, fans were overjoyed to hear that Hilary was returning to the role that made her a household name, as filming would soon begin in a reboot of the classic tween show.
“I think they’re really trying to figure out what kind of content they want on Disney+, and that’s not quite aligning with where I see Lizzie right now, you know, and I’m very protective of her and they’re very protective of her .’
In the summer of 2019, fans were thrilled to learn that Hilary was returning to the role that made her a household name, as filming was soon to begin in a reboot of the classic tween show.
“But the thing for me was just the way she was able to connect with what was going on in people watching the show,” she said. “It was like they were looking at themselves, you know, and, and the, and that’s what they talked about. And so to me, you know, we have we, me, it only makes sense to me to put on a show where she acts like a 30-year-old in a modern world.”
She admitted that there was “a lot of creative discussion” to bring Lizzie’s character up to speed as a grown woman navigating new relationships.
In May 2021, actress Hilary Duff, who is known for her role as Lizzie, admitted that she is “very protective” of her character and really fought to bring her back to life despite a botched reboot with Disney+
Lizzie McGuire first aired in 2001 on the Disney Channel and even got her own movie, which was released in 2003 and grossed $55 million at the box office
“We tried to make it work,” she said. “And, you know, there’s always a lot of talk, but I don’t think it’s going to happen” (seen in a clip from the reboot)
“We tried to make it work,” she said. “And you know, there’s always a lot of talks, but I don’t think it’s going to happen.”
Lizzie McGuire first aired in 2001 on the Disney Channel and even received her own movie, which was released in 2003 and grossed $55 million at the box office.
When Terri Minsky walked away from the show in early 2020, Disney released a statement about creative differences.
Duff begged Disney to move the show to Hulu so viewers could watch her character evolve from a teen to a young adult living in the city, a move by the show Love, Simon for a similar situation.
The Hollywood Reporter revealed that a leaked script featured “the existence of sex with cheating as the central plot point,” which could be why Disney wanted to use a PG rating.