Mystery behind 00s TV star solved after cast told to ‘keep quiet’

A long-running Malcom in The Middle mystery has finally been solved – what happened to Dewey actor Erik Per Sullivan?

Malcom In The Middle ran for five seasons from 2000 to 2006 following child genius Malcom, his unruly brothers, and their erratic parents.

Dewey was the youngest sibling who immediately won strangers over by being so adorable he’d have them in the palm of his hand – until he was a nightmare.

Bryan Cranston recently revealed he’s in the process of making a Malcom in The Middle reboot work – but there is one cast member who might not be joining his co-stars.

Erik has been completely off the radar since Malcolm ended, and Jane Kaczmarek, who played mom Lois, has revealed where he’d been hiding after being asked to ‘keep quiet’.

‘He’s well, he’s very, very well,’ she told Malcolm France, a YouTube series devoted to the sitcom.

‘He did Malcolm for seven years, he started at seven, he ended at 14. He wasn’t interested in acting, at all.

‘He goes to school at a very prestigious American university that he’s asked us all to be quiet about and he loves Charles Dickens.

‘He’s doing graduate work in Victorian literature. I admire it because so many people think being in show business is the greatest thing in the world, it’s not for everyone.’

Jane’s revelation comes after Frankie Muniz, who starred as titular Malcolm, admitted he didn’t know what Erik was up to.

‘I hate to say that because I’ve talked to him a few times since the show ended,’ he said.

‘I’ve talked to his parents a lot. When I was in the band, we went and played in the city where he lives and his parents came to the show but unfortunately he couldn’t make it.

‘So I got to talk to them, and he’s been all over doing a lot of different things.

‘But one thing I know, some actors or some people just got to do it when they were a kid and then they wanted to experience other things and kind of live a more normal life out of the spotlight.

‘I think that’s what he wanted to do so good for him.’

While Erik is keeping a low profile, Frankie recently appeared on the Australian version of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and broke down in tears recalling the impact the show had on his childhood.

‘Me and my mum went [to LA], but my sister stayed with my dad in Northern Carolina,’ he told camp mates.

‘But my mum 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,’ he continued as his eyes began to fill with tears.

‘Like it just hit me right now. It essentially was my career that separated our whole family. I don’t know how much positive it brought to the family. I wasn’t a part of the family since I was 11 because that’s when I left.’

As for the rest of the Malcolm In The Middle cast, Hal star Bryan went on to win an Emmy award for playing Walter White in Breaking Bad, Jane later appeared on The Simoons and Help Me Help You, and Rhys star Justin Berfield now owns his own TV development company.