FRANKIE Muniz has blamed his success on Malcolm in the Middle for ending his parent’s marriage.
The former child star fought through tears as he shared his childhood memories from the Fox comedy.
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Frankie is currently a contestant on the Australian version of the game show I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!
The now 38-year-old opened up while sharing stories with his celebrity co-campers, explaining that when he left his east coast home at age 11 to find fame in Hollywood.
Two years later, he landed the lead role in Malcolm in the Middle.
“Me and my mom went, but my sister stayed with my dad in North Carolina,” he said, before confessing, “My mom and dad ended up getting a divorce during that time.
“So in that sense, it’s kind of sad to think about, that it really did separate the family completely.”
Frankie took a pause, choking back tears, as his fellow contestants shared their sympathy.
“Essentially, it was my career that separated our whole family.”
Frankie admits he is able to live comfortably off of royalties from the show, and told the other campers he was wort $40 million.
But money truly couldn’t buy happiness for the Big Fat Liar star.
“I don’t know how much positive it brought to the family,” he concluded. “I wasn’t a part of the family since I was 11, because that’s when I left.”
WALKING AWAY
Frankie previously discussed how the stress of carrying a prime-time sitcom took its toll personally as well.
The actor shared what motivated him to walk away from the show completely, skipping some shows.
“There were two episodes I’m not in,” he told his colleagues. “I walked off the set.”
Frankie chalked up his actions as a response to the behaviors of “certain people,” though he did not specify who that might be.
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However, he did explain by what type of behavior had he been so incensed.
“Everyone was so afraid to stand up when certain people were controlling or rude or disrespectful,” the 38-year-old recalled.
“Like they walked on pins and needles,” he added.
“I was so mortified by seeing people afraid to stand up for themselves, I was like: ‘Say something,'” he shared.
“I didn’t care if they told me I was never going back, because it was worth it to me. It helped that the show was based around me.”
SPEED RACER
Frankie eventually sped away from the acting world, and instead steered over to professional racing.
He made his debut in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Daytona International Speedway earlier this year.
Frankie runs the No. 35 Ford Performance Ford Mustang for Joey Gase Racing.
It is a major step up for Muniz, who has driven competitively for years and took part in the entry-level Nascar Arca Series last year.
Last year, he raced the full 20-race ARCA schedule and finished fourth despite a number of mechanical problems.
His best result came at Michigan where he finished fifth.
And Frankie is ready for the challenge of the second-tier Xfinity Series, as he looks to climb the NASCAR ladder.
“I’m excited to prove to people that I can race in this series,” he told the Associated Press.
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