Justin Berfield, known for portraying Reese in the hit 2000s series Malcolm in the Middle, has returned to acting after a 20-year hiatus. The 40-year-old actor reprises his role in the four-part revival, Malcolm in the Middle: Life’s Still Unfair, which premiered on Friday on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+. The limited series reunites original cast members, including Bryan Cranston, Jane Kaczmarek, Frankie Muniz, and Christopher Masterson, though Erik Per Sullivan opted out.
Reasons for Stepping Away from Hollywood
Berfield began acting at age five and starred in Malcolm in the Middle for seven years. He decided to leave the industry to pursue new experiences. “I just wanted to change because I had started acting when I was five. Fortunately, I worked quite a bit, and I then got on Malcolm in the Middle, which was seven years,” Berfield explained. “I just grew up working constantly, and I wanted to try something different.”
During his break, Berfield transitioned into producing, contributing to projects like The Country Bears, Romance and Cigarettes, Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive, and Sons of Tucson. He also traveled extensively before focusing on family life.
Family Life and Fatherhood
Berfield married Liza Almeida and became a stay-at-home dad to their two children, including a daughter born in 2020 and a second child a few years later. He shields his family from the public spotlight but shares occasional glimpses on Instagram. “I got married and had a couple of kids and then time flew by,” he said. “Now it’s been 20 years, and we’re fortunate enough to be able to step back into it now.”
Bringing his eldest daughter to the set proved rewarding. “It was just really nice showing my eldest daughter just me working so she can actually see it’s better than just turning on the TV and showing them something. She actually got to see me on set,” Berfield shared.
Seamless Return to the Spotlight
Berfield experienced minimal anxiety upon resuming acting. “I’d stepped away from acting for 20 years now, so I didn’t have a lot of pressure,” he noted. “Obviously I had pressure on myself because I wanted to do a good job. I wanted people to enjoy the show, but it was more just me enjoying the moment too. For me, it was a little bit different. It was low pressure.”
Reuniting with the original cast, crew, and creator Linwood Boomer eased the process. The family attended Hulu’s New York premiere together. Berfield expressed confidence in the project, stating, “I had very little stress that it wasn’t going to be great because he wasn’t going to come back and do something that he didn’t feel was great. When he was on board, he wrote it with a few of the original writers of Malcolm. I knew it was going to be funny. I knew it was going to have the flavor and the familiarity of what this crazy family is. So I wasn’t concerned at all.”
Upon wrapping production in May last year, Berfield posted on Instagram: “Just reflecting on the final days on the Malcolm in the Middle Revival set. It was so amazing catching up with old friends and met some amazing new ones! We’re so lucky that we got to come back to these characters after 20 years and see where they’ve been. I had so much fun getting to go back to my old life as an actor…now it’s back to carpools and diapers!”
