If you were a kid in the early 2000s, chances are you grew up watching Lizzie McGuire on Disney. Hilary Duff starred as a lovable, clumsy, and sometimes bratty teenage girl just trying to navigate her way through middle school. So, basically, she was all of us.
The popular girls gave her a hard time, and her parents were tough on her. Plus, she had an annoying little brother, which most of us could relate to ten-fold - I mean, who didn't have a pesky younger or older sibling that drove us (and our friends) nuts?
Lizzie became our friend, and we loved to watch her adventures as she went through the same things we were going through. We desperately wanted her to end up with her best friend Gordo, even though she was in love with pretty-boy Ethan.
But, you may not know the show quite as well as you probably think you do. For example, did you know that Hilary found being Lizzie "annoying" at times or that the famous animated Lizzie almost didn't make it into the show?
We thought it would be fun to take a walk down memory lane and put together a list of little-known tidbits about the show. So, keep scrolling to learn 21 facts about Lizzie McGuire you likely never knew.
1. Hilary almost screwed up her audition.
Hilary says she did a "terrible job" of her initial audition for Lizzie McGuire. "I hadn't read my lines," she admitted.
Hilary was considering giving up acting at the time, so she wasn't that worried about getting the part. But Terri Minsky, the show's creator, saw potential in her and reached out.
"I knew there was so much [talent] there," Minsky says. And we sure are glad she persisted!
2. Ethan was never meant to be Lizzie's love interest.
Clayton Snyder, who played Ethan, wasn't initially meant to be cast as Lizzie's crush. He was set to just be a stereotypical jock.
"There was another dreamy boy that she was supposed to be interested in, but I think he wasn't available," writer Nina Bargiel said. "So we needed someone new, and Ethan was already there, so we just built him up."
3. Hilary used her fashion sense to stand out from the crowd.
Hilary's personal style was one of the things that ultimately helped get her the job. Former Disney president Rich Ross said, "When we were casting Lizzie McGuire, we called her in four times."
"She wasn't doing anything wrong," he said. "She just wore such great outfits, and we wanted to see what she'd come in with next."
4. What's Lizzie Thinking?
Lizzie McGuire's original title was What's Lizzie Thinking? But somewhere along the line, it got changed.
5. Ethan's beauty took time.
In an interview with MTV, Snyder admitted that he took the longest in the hair and makeup chair out of all the cast members. "I had a curly fro, clown mop of hair off-set, and I took longer than the girls did in hair and makeup to get that thing as luscious and straight as it was," he said.
6. She's back!
Disney+ confirmed rumors of a Lizzie McGuire revival in 2019. Hilary Duff was set to reprise her role as Lizzie, and it was to focus on the iconic character navigating her way through her 30s in New York.
7. The whole gang is here.
Details for the revival's casting were kept quiet, but before long, a photo surfaced that suggested that all the originals would be returning. Hallie Todd, Robert Carradine, and Jake Thomas were all photographed at a table read.
8. This is what broken dreams are made of.
Sadly, the revival series never ended up seeing the light of day. Hilary announced in 2020 that the show had been canceled due to creative differences.
"I'm very sad, but I promise everyone tried their best, and the stars just didn't align," Hilary said. "Hey now, this is what 2020's made of."
9. So many Lizzies.
Some other famous actresses auditioned for the role of Lizzie. Among them were Lindsay Lohan, Hailee Hirsh, and Sarah Paxton.
10. Lizzie and Gordo forever.
Sadly for those of us who spent our teens shipping Lizzie and Gordo together, the pair were never going to happen. In the revival, Lizzie was going to be engaged to someone else.
"You're always kind of wondering," Hilary said. "We wanted it to hurt everyone a little bit, and it'll continue to hurt."
11. Being Lizzie was annoying.
Although playing Lizzie launched Hilary Duff into teen stardom, Hilary admitted she found playing Lizzie "torturous" sometimes. "I loved it during the filming," she explained.
"I just didn't know what a success the show was gonna be, and after that, I was still Lizzie McGuire to people, and that was super annoying. Now it's not; I don't care now."
12. It's all about the merch.
Lizzie McGuire merchandise was a big deal, and when the show was at its most popular stage, it brought in $100 million purely on merchandise. With more than 2 million viewers per episode, Lizzie McGuire was the highest-rated series on Disney at the time.
13. The movie was BIG!
When The Lizzie McGuire Movie came out in 2003, it became a huge hit and debuted at number 2 at the box office. It was beaten by X2: X-Men United.
14. Too risque for Disney.
The Lizzie McGuire writers wanted to do an episode about Lizzie going to buy her first bra, but the Disney Channel wasn't sure. "They [the Disney Channel executives] said, 'Oh my god, you can't do that!'" producer Stan Rogow said.
15. Where's Miranda?
Many fans wondered why Miranda was missing from some of the show's final episodes and was not featured in the movie. It turns out that Lalaine withdrew because she wanted to focus on developing her music career.
16. Lizzie and Gordo sitting in a tree. K.I.S.S.I.N.G.
Fans eventually got to see Lizzie and Gordo kiss. But it was pretty much just a gift from the writers.
"We knew fans wanted Lizzie and Gordo to get together," writer Jeremy Bargiel said. It was pretty clear by then that this was going to be the end of the Lizzie McGuire train, so we wanted to make sure that you got a good last stop."
17. The bra episode.
The first bra episode is still one of the most memorable for Hilary. "I definitely think that the bra episode is one that stands out in my brain as being like first of all, really wanting it, 'cause I thought a bra was cool, and then second of all, being like, 'How am I gonna get that?" she said.
"I have to talk to my parents about that. That's gonna be the worst thing ever.'"
18. Lost spin-offs.
When Lizzie McGuire finished, producers planned to develop a spin-off series about Miranda's little sister, Stevie, played by Selena Gomez. But the show never came to fruition, with the Disney Channel opting to launch Hannah Montana and The Wizards of Waverly Place instead.
19. No contract, no show.
Lizzie McGuire was intended to continue as a primetime sitcom following Lizzie and her friends as they started high school. However, due to not agreeing on a contract, Hilary decided to part ways with Disney instead.
20. Mrs. Duff to the rescue.
Hilary's mom says Disney tried to bully her daughter into accepting their offer. "Disney thought they'd be able to bully us into accepting whatever offer they wanted to make, and they couldn't," she said.
"We walked away from a sequel; they walked away from a franchise. We weren't feeling the love...they weren't giving Hilary the respect she deserved."
21. Cardi B. loves Lizzie.
Cardi B. mentioned her love for Lizzie when she spoke about being invited to Paris Fashion Week. "Has anyone seen that Hilary Duff movie [The Lizzie McGuire Movie]?" she said.
"There's a song in it that anytime I go to an event that I've always wanted to go to, I always play it in my head," she explained. "It goes, 'Hey now, hey now, this is what dreams are made of.' That's how I feel every single time that I get invited to these fashion events."
So, there you have it! 21 facts about Lizzie McGuire you likely never knew.
Or, perhaps if you're a hardcore Lizzie fan, you may have already known some of these interesting tidbits. Either way, we hope you've enjoyed walking down memory lane with us.
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