Bryan Cranston was wearing a “skin-coloured Speedo” when he first met Frankie Muniz.
Bryan Cranston starred in the hit sitcom
The 70-year-old actor played Hal in Malcolm in the Middle, the hit TV sitcom, between 2000 and 2006, and Frankie has recalled his bizarre first encounter with his co-star.
The 40-year-old actor told People: “A memory I definitely have is the day I met Bryan Cranston, which was the first day of filming.
“He was the last person to be cast. I think it was even that morning. They finalised it and brought him in.”
The first scene they filmed together was from the pilot episode, in which Lois shaves Hal’s back.
Frankie said: “He came in, like, a skin-coloured Speedo and was like, ‘Hey, boys, I’m going to be your dad.’ Obviously pretty awkward.”
Despite this, Bryan quickly proved himself to be an indispensable part of the show.
Frankie said: “Hal originally was supposed to be such a small character … kind of like an afterthought. But Bryan is such an incredible actor and made the show, I think.”
Frankie also recalled developing a family-like bond with his co-stars.
The actor shared: “We were always running [around] behind the scenes kind of trying to prank people. We had clothespins and we’d pin them on everybody’s backs … see how many you can get on before people realised.”
Malcolm in the Middle was cancelled at short notice back in 2006, but Frankie only became emotional on the last day of filming.
He recalled: “It didn’t have any effect on me like I thought it would until literally the last shot of the last day.
“I looked around at all the cast … and two or three hundred crew members from over the seven years had come in. Everyone was there.
“I remember starting [to cry] when they started rolling — and it wasn’t for the scene, but it worked really well for the moment. It was really hard to say goodbye.”
