Hilary Duff Defends Mom As Frankie Muniz Calls Her Intense

Hilary Duff is speaking out after her Agent Cody Banks costar Frankie Muniz recently described her mom, Susan Colleen Duff, as “super intense.”

“I was never pushed into acting and I was never pushed into singing,” Hilary, 38, told “Mythical Kitchen” in an interview posted on Friday, March 13. “My mom knew that my sister [Haylie Duff] and I loved performing…. I understand giving what your children are interested in energy … Back when I was doing it, no one was acting where I came from, so everyone thought it was like, ‘She has a stage mom.’”

While Hilary did not directly address Muniz’s specific complaints about her mom, she credited Susan for having her back as a child star.

“It was really nice that I had my mom in the corner … for better or for worse,” she added. “I think there [were] obviously mistakes made and a learning process, but it’s hard to be like a family up against a machine.”

Related: ‘Lizzie McGuire’ Cast: Where Are They Now?

Hilary Duff’s breakout role on Lizzie McGuire yielded years of success for the actress that continues today, while her costars chose slightly different paths. The sitcom — starring Duff (Lizzie McGuire), Lalaine (Miranda Sanchez), Adam Lamberg (Gordo), Jake Thomas (Matt McGuire), Hallie Todd (Jo McGuire) and Robert Carradine (Sam McGuire) — aired from 2001 to 2004 and […]

Hilary went on, “I’m super grateful for [my mom].”

Hilary and Muniz dated as teenagers though they reportedly went their separate ways after filming 2003 action comedy Agent Cody Banks. Muniz, 40, revealed on the “Joe Vulpis Podcast” last September that he hadn’t spoken to Hilary in 22 years.

“There’s another story I haven’t told, and I don’t know if I want to tell it, but maybe I will. It’s been a long time,” he remembered. “I was on the set of Lizzie McGuire, and I was in Hilary’s dressing room and her mom was there. Her mom was — I’m going to say — the epitome of a stage mom, momager. … Hilary was so cool, we had an awesome relationship, but her mom was super intense. My mom was the opposite.”

He described Hilary as one of his “first friends” after moving to Los Angeles as a child actor. Per Muniz, he had an awkward conversation with Hilary’s mom Susan when he guest starred on a 2002 episode of her Disney series Lizzie McGuire.

“Her mom was like, ‘Do you know what you’re doing this summer? What are you doing this summer?’” he remembered. “And I go, ‘Oh, I’m filming this movie where I’m playing like a junior James Bond. It’s called Agent Cody Banks.’”

Muniz remembered Susan asking if he had any input on who would pay his girlfriend in Agent Cody Banks. He expected Smallville’s Kristin Kreuk to sign on for the role but learned the very next day that Duff landed the part instead.

“Needless to say, I wasn’t thrilled about it. And not because I didn’t want it to be Hilary,” he explained. “I don’t know how much I want to say. I’m trying to think about it because I’ve already said way too much.”

The actor added, “I’ve never talked to Hilary since the last day of filming. I’ve not said one word to her since then. So that’s the truth of that. No one knows about my Hilary Duff story.”

Despite their 22-year estrangement, Muniz said he’d “love to catch up with” Hilary and would even bring up the awkward end to their friendship.

Meanwhile, Hilary recently opened up about her relationship with her sister Haylie after writing about their estrangement on her new album Luck … or Something.

“Absolutely the most lonely part of my existence is not having my sister in my life at the moment,” Hilary told CBS Mornings in February. “It’s my truth, and so many people are [also] having this experience. It’s hard because I am me, and people know everything about my life since I was a child. I didn’t necessarily choose that part, but it’s my reality. It was honestly, like, healing to say.”