Actor Frankie Muniz leaves ‘miserable’ Hollywood for good, will race in NASCAR full-time
Actor Frankie Muniz announced he’s putting his acting career on hold indefinitely as he prepares to race full-time starting in 2025.
After 20 years of racing, the former “Malcolm in the Middle” star is making a huge leap forward as he’s set to become a full-time driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Reaume Brothers Racing.
‘I can’t be part-time, you can’t act on the side.’
In an interview with Fox News, Muniz called his new gig “a dream come true.”
“It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do, and the fact that I actually get to announce that I’m doing it full-time next year, I’m thrilled,” he said.
Muniz continued, “Making the leap up to the Truck Series is a whole other level.”
Muniz practices at the Nashville Superspeedway in June.Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images
When asked if he was ready to give up acting to be a full-time driver, Muniz said he has been working toward being a professional driver for decades.
“I wouldn’t say it was a hard decision. This is something I’ve been working for for literally 20 years,” he told Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade.
Muniz gave a candid interview in April during which he expressed similar sentiments about leaving Hollywood, explaining his disconnect with the acting world.
“I never felt like I fully fit in the Hollywood world, even though I was in the world,” he recalled. “I was nominated for Emmys and Golden Globes, and I was going to all this stuff, and I was there, and I was like, ‘How am I here?'”
Muniz added, “I hated L.A., so I kind of stayed in my own little world, my own little bubble. And moving to Arizona, I did it on a whim, and I realized immediately that I started looking up. I started enjoying looking at trees and birds in the sky. Going to the grocery store was a fun thing. You don’t get that in L.A. It’s a miserable experience.”
Muniz added that he wanted to keep his children out of Hollywood. Despite saying he had a positive experience, he noted that he knew a number of people who had “insanely negative” experiences.
For racing, Muniz said he has been chasing the “incredible feeling” of coming in first, and that comes with training and competing just as hard as the other drivers — not acting.
“I can’t be part-time, you can’t act on the side,” he reiterated.
Muniz already has made two starts with Reaume Brothers Racing in 2024, first at the Rackley Roofing 200 in Nashville on June 28 and then the Kubota Tractor 200 in Kansas City, Kansas, on Sept. 27. He finished 31st out of 36 drivers in Nashville and 29th out of 34 in Kansas City, Kansas.
According to NASCAR, the 38-year-old hopes to continue “building chemistry with the team and developing his notebook for the upcoming year.”
Muniz will drive the No. 33 Ford next season.
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