Frankie Muniz Reflects on 'Sad Times' During Rollercoaster Year

Frankie Muniz is reflecting on the highs and lows of 2026

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• In a post shared to Instagram, the actor said the year has so far been full of "ups and downs"

• The actor famously played Malcolm in Malcolm in the Middle from 2000 to 2006 and again more recently in the series revival

Frankie Munizis reflecting on a year full of "ups and downs."

In a post shared toInstagram, the 40-year-old actor could be seen in a black and white photo, which he caption, "What a year so far... So many ups and downs, happy and sad times, crazy fun days and super stressful ones too ...I guess I'm truly living, experiencing it all."

Muniz rose to fame as a child star, taking on the role of Malcolm on the hit tv showMalcolm in the Middlefrom 2000 to 2006 and again more recently in the series revival. He also starred in films such asBig Fat Liar(2002) andAgent Cody Banks(2003).

Prior to theMalcolmreboot, Munizstepped away from acting to focus on NASCAR racing.

Over the past year, the actor and driver has had a notable number of ups and downs, as his post suggests.

In August 2025, he suffered a fall at his home (which took place as he was changing the batteries of a Ring camera) and sustained a wrist fracture that caused him to take a seven-week break from racing as he recovered.

Speaking to PEOPLE in aninterview given on his 40th birthdayin December, the actor acknowledged racing is "not a young man's sport," adding, "There's so much that happens in racing that's out of your control and we had a lot of things happen this year that were out of our control, where it felt like it was the universe telling me like, 'Maybe it's not for you.' "

"The highs of racing are so high, but the lows of racing are really low so I went through a weird period emotionally throughout the season," he added.

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But among the highs of the year were Muniz's reprisal of the titular role inMalcolm in the Middle: Life’s Still Unfair, which he told PEOPLE in an earlier interview, "felt like home."

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Muniz spoke exclusively to PEOPLE at the New York City premiere of the reboot in April, which he attended with his wife Paige Muniz and their son.

"I know it kind of sounds cliché to say, but what you think is important in life, the things that you really focus on, to me, until you have a kid...so many people say that. 'You have no idea.' Even being on set and my son being there, I want to make him proud," he toldPEOPLEat the time.

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Muniz married his wife in an official ceremony in 2020, though the couple exchanged vows in a small, private ceremony on Oct. 3, 2019.

They welcomed their son Mauz Mosley Muniz on March 22, 2021, with the baby weighing in at “exactly 7lbs,” according to Paige'sInstagram postannouncing his birth.

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