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Lizzie McGuire Star Hilary Duff Updates Disney+ Series' Future

With production on Disney+'s Lizzie McGuire return series still shut down (due to both creative differences as well as the current health crisis) and more than a month after reports circulated the streaming service took issue with the mature subject matter being addressed in the pilot episode, Hilary Duff offered fans a brief update on where things stand. Speaking with Cosmopolitan to promote her Mother's Day initiative with Kohl's, Duff was asked if Lizzie would welcome back Paolo after he betrayed her on the original series even after 17 years. While her response to the Paolo question was pretty much what fans would expect, it's what came before it that gives us the impression that the creative standoff remains as cold as ever (if not worse): "I'm still talking to [the team] weekly, I don't know. They were shooting and then everything was put on hold. And we're just kind of figuring out if we can make this happen. But there were plans for a lot of people to be in the show. So, um, I already know some of those things but I don't know about Paolo. I think she'd probably be pretty mad to see him."

A month after series creator Terri Minsky and Disney+ had a parting of the ways over the revival series' creative direction and production on the series was put on hiatus, Duff took to Instagram to reaffirm where she would like to see "Lizzie" land: "I'd be doing a disservice to everyone by limiting the realities of a 30-year-old's journey to live under the ceiling of a PG rating. It's important to me that just as her experiences as a preteen/teenager navigating life were authentic, her next chapters are equally as real and relatable. It would be a dream if Disney would let us move the show to Hulu if they were interested, and I could bring this beloved character to life again."

Variety writer Joe Otterson offered a look behind the scenes on what's being on (and wrong) with the revival – here are some highlights from the article. Duff's interest in going for a more "adult" return to the character was evident in an Instagram story she posted regarding the move of Love, Victor to Hulu with the words "family-friendly" circled (should be able to still see it here). Speaking with Variety after "parting ways" with Disney+, Minsky praised Duff's older, more mature portrayal of Lizzie McGuire – so much so that a move to Hulu was welcomed: "I am so proud of the two episodes we did. Hilary has a grasp of Lizzie McGuire at 30 that needs to be seen. It's a wonderful thing to watch. I would love the show to exist, but ideally, I would love it if it could be given that treatment of going to Hulu and doing the show that we were doing. That's the part where I am completely in the dark. It's important to me that this show was important to people. I felt like I wanted to do a show that was worthy of that kind of devotion."

Sources in the Variety report stated that the streaming service, Minsky, and Duff were all on the same page regarding the creative approach to the new series and what it would include. While Minsky would not comment on how she learned about her firing and production being suspended, it's being reported that she, her writing staff, the production team, and Duff only learned of the show's status after the initial Variety report went to post (with Variety reaching out to Disney before going live). Duff was on her honeymoon in Mozambique with husband Matthew Koma when she learned the news. Original series cast members Adam Lamberg, Hallie Todd, Robert Carradine, and Jake Thomas, along with writers and production staff, are still waiting for a decision on the show's future.

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