Frankie Muniz

Francisco Muniz IV (born December 5, 1985) is an American actor.

Francisco Muniz IV was born in Wood-Ridge, New Jersey, on December 5, 1985, the son of nurse Denise and restaurateur Francisco Muniz III.

Muniz's mother is half Irish and half Italian, while his father is Puerto Rican (of Spanish descent from Asturias).

He has an elder sister named Cristina.

When Muniz was four years old, his family moved to Knightdale, North Carolina, where he grew up.

He was discovered at the age of eight at a talent show in Raleigh, North Carolina, playing Tiny Tim in a local production of A Christmas Carol.

His parents divorced shortly after, and he subsequently moved with his mother to Burbank, California.

Beginning in the sixth grade, he was home-schooled by his mother.

Muniz appeared in commercials and made his film debut in the made-for-television movie To Dance with Olivia (1997), starring Lou Gossett Jr. In that same year, he appeared in the CBS Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation of What the Deaf Man Heard.

He played the title character in the Fox sitcom Malcolm in the Middle (2000–2006), for which he earned an Emmy Award nomination and two Golden Globe Award nominations.

A small role in the film Lost & Found (1999) led to his breakout role as the title character on Linwood Boomer's sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, which premiered on Fox on January 9, 2000.

The show was successful and it was quickly met with accolades.

The pilot episode was watched by 23 million people and the second episode, "Red Dress" (premiered on January 16, 2000), by 26 million.

His first starring role was as Willie Morris in the 2000 family drama film My Dog Skip, which was released at the same approximate time as the pilot for Malcolm in the Middle.

That same year, he provided the character voice of Domino in the 2000 video game 102 Dalmatians: Puppies to the Rescue and was featured on the video game Stargate Worlds.

The following year, he contributed a character voice to the animal cast of the film Dr. Dolittle 2.

Muniz was also the voice of Chester McBadBat in the first two seasons of The Fairly OddParents until Jason Marsden took over.

He was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2001, and received The Hollywood Reporter "Young Star Award" for his work in the series.

Throughout his television career, Muniz made guest appearances on the shows Lizzie McGuire; Sabrina, the Teenage Witch; and MADtv.

His film roles include Deuces Wild (2002), Big Fat Liar (2002), Agent Cody Banks (2003), and Racing Stripes (2005).

He had a hit with the 2002 release Big Fat Liar, in which he co-starred with teen actress Amanda Bynes as a pair of students seeking revenge on a sleazy movie producer (played by Paul Giamatti).

Muniz was also part of the ensemble for the gang film Deuces Wild, released that same year.

At the height of his fame, he was considered one of the most popular child actors and "one of Hollywood's most bankable teens" in 2003.

In 2003, he made a cameo appearance as Cher's underage boyfriend in Stuck on You.

That same year, he appeared in the series premiere of Ashton Kutcher's MTV practical joke series Punk'd.

Muniz subsequently played the title role in the film Agent Cody Banks as well as its sequel, Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London.

The first film opened in March 2003, and grossed $47 million; the sequel, which opened a year later, grossed $28 million.

He trained in martial arts for the films, and performed most of his own stunts.

He also commented that it was the point in his career where he should "make the transition from child actor to an adult actor or a respectable actor."

In 2004, he wrote the teleplay of the TV show Granted, on which he was also the executive producer.

Muniz provided the character voice of a zebra named Stripes, who wishes to become a racing equine, in the 2005 film Racing Stripes.

That same year, he made a guest appearance as himself in "Mr. F", an episode of the Fox comedy Arrested Development.

In April 2006, he began filming My Sexiest Year, an independent film in which Harvey Keitel played his father.

He announced, during that same month, that he would be taking a break from acting, in order to pursue a career in race car driving, under a full-time two-year deal with Jensen Motorsport in the Formula BMW competition.

In 2006, he was executive producer for the movie Choose Your Own Adventure: The Abominable Snowman.

Malcolm in the Middle finished its run on May 14, 2006.

In 2008, he put his acting career on hold to pursue an open-wheel racing career, and competed in the Atlantic Championship.

He returned to racing in 2021 in stock cars, joining Rette Jones Racing for a full season in the ARCA Menards Series in 2023, where he would finish 4th in the standings.

He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 35 Ford Mustang for Joey Gase Motorsports.

From 2012 to 2014, he was the drummer of the indie rock band Kingsfoil.