As we might have suspected, Disney was apprehensive about having one of their childhood sweethearts turn into a woman in her 30s.
The 'Lizzie McGuire' reboot is all but a distant memory that never came to pass - and now we finally exactly why.
Hilary Duff, the star of the Disney Channel original from the 2000s, has spoken to 'Women's Health Magazine' about just why the revival didn't happen. It turns out Disney were not keen on the character being more mature, essentially a relatable 30-year-old woman now around the same age as the fans of the series.
The 34-year-old said: "She had to be 30 years old doing 30-year-old things. She didn’t need to be doing bong rips and having one-night stands all the time, but it had to be authentic. I think they got spooked."
The 'Lizzie McGuire' reboot was first announced in 2019, with Disney even releasing a very brief teaser during a "look ahead" at their content for 2020. Duff, however, confirmed in late 2020 that the project wasn't moving forward at Disney any longer. Original series stars Adam Lamberg, Hallie Todd, Robert Carradine and Jake Thomas were all expected to reprise their roles alongside Duff.
Things didn't work out too badly for Hilary Duff on the job front following the series' cancellation, with her nabbing the main role as Sophie in another reboot/sequel series, Hulu's 'How I Met Your Father'. The comedy sitcom has been renewed for a second season and also stars Kim Cattrall and Josh Peck.
Duff says that she can see why people draw definite parallels between Lizzie and Sophie: "It would be dumb of me to not know that I have a sweet spot playing that relatable girl. I am that girl. It was a conscious choice not to be angsty and try to shift people’s opinions on who I am. That doesn’t mean I didn’t want to try."
'How I Met Your Father' begins streaming on Disney+ now.
