Erik Per Sullivan got a hefty offer to return for the Malcolm in the Middle revival, but he ultimately said no.
Per Sullivan’s onscreen mom, Jane Kaczmarek, was asked about his absence from the upcoming four-part special, telling The Guardian on Saturday, April 4, that the retired actor, 34, is “studying Dickens and is an incredible student.”
“They offered him buckets of money to come back, and he just said, ‘No, thank you,’” she added.
Kaczmarek, 70, previously defended Per Sullivan’s decision to stay out of the spotlight.
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“I admire it because so many people think being in show business is the greatest thing in the world. It’s not for everyone,” she said in a 2024 interview about how Per Sullivan is a student at “a very prestigious American university.”
Per Sullivan rose to stardom playing Dewey on Malcolm in the Middle, which ran from 2000 to 2006. He also appeared in Come on Over, Arthur and the Invisibles and Twelve before he officially retired in 2010, and he hasn’t participated in any of the show’s reunions over the years.
After Hulu picked up a revival series for Malcolm in the Middle, it was confirmed that Per Sullivan would be recast, with Caleb Ellsworth-Clark taking over the role of Dewey.
The rest of the cast — including Frankie Muniz, Bryan Cranston, Kaczmarek, Christopher Masterson and Justin Berfield — will reprise their respective characters. In addition to the main cast, Kiana Madeira, Anthony Timpano, Vaughan Murrae and Keeley Karsten have been cast in key roles as well.
“25 years since we premiered Malcolm in the Middle. I’m so excited… that I may have peed just a little bit,” Cranston, 70, and Kaczmarek said in a December 2024 announcement post. “What a delight that I get to yell at that kid again! We’re very, very excited about coming back together and seeing what this family has been up to.”
The revival was written by Linwood Boomer, who created the original series. It will chronicle Malcolm (Muniz) and his daughter as they are “drawn into the family’s chaos when Hal (Cranston) and Lois (Kaczmarek) demand his presence for their 40th wedding anniversary party,” according to a press release.
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Before the series premiere on Friday, April 10, Muniz, 40, recalled past efforts to bring the show back.
“I think I had put a tweet out in 2015, [saying], ‘It would be so cool to see where Malcolm and his family are.’ I couldn’t believe the response and how [many people] went crazy for that,” Muniz exclusively told Us Weekly in September 2025. “I called Linwood Boomer, and he was like, ‘No, I like how it ended.’ Bryan and I talked about it, and he took the lead in making it happen. It took 10 years.”
Muniz had no hesitation about signing onto the project.
“People go, ‘You don’t want to get pigeonholed [as] one character.’ But I’m like, ‘Wherever I go in the world, people know Malcolm, and they love the show and that family,’” he added. “I was in Mexico two months ago, and literally, people were crying to me [over] how it changed their family dynamic. The timing wasn’t perfect because I’m now a full-time NASCAR driver, but I wasn’t going to say no because of that.”
Muniz continued: “Having stepped away from Hollywood a bit to focus on other things and get the opportunity to jump back into it in a big way was awesome. At times, you take things for granted … now I try to put more effort into everything.”
