Report: ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ reboot will feature a non-binary-identifying child 

A popular television show from the 2000s is facing backlash from fans because its reboot will reportedly feature a child who identifies as neither male nor female. 

Malcolm in the Middle is reportedly returning to Disney+ as a four-episode miniseries, likely in 2026. 

However, film industry insider Daniel Richtman reports that the youngest child in the family will be a “16-year-old non-binary kid.” 

Fans pushed back against the news on social media. 

“I don’t watch TV anymore, but I was going to make an exception for this revival bc I loved Malcolm in the Middle back in the day,” Jennifer Gingrich wrote on X. “Unless they have Lois tells Jamie, her youngest son, ‘Nonbinary isn’t real. You’re a boy, deal with it,’ I’m out.” 

Hazel Appleyard posted, “Don’t you just hate when a show decides to commit su!cide like this?” 

“I can’t think about anything more out of place, more against its own identity and themes, than a woke Malcolm in the middle,” another X user responded. 

Children’s shows have also pushed non-binary characters in recent years, including Ridley Jones, Transformers: EarthSpark and Rubble & Crew, a PAW Patrol spinoff. 

The news about Malcolm in the Middle comes as Disney reportedly moves to scale back its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, according to Axios. 

Disney scrapped the controversial “Reimagine Tomorrow” initiative, aimed at “amplifying underrepresented voices and untold stories as well as championing the importance of accurate representation in media and entertainment,” Fox News reported. 

Disney is also changing content advisory disclaimers at the start of older works such as Dumbo and Peter Pan. Previously, these advisories warned viewers that the film “includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of peoples or cultures.” 

The shortened advisory says, “This program is presented as originally created and may contain stereotypes or negative depictions.” 

A June 2023 Rasmussen poll found that 71% of Americans believe only two genders exist. President Donald Trump, on the first day of his second term, signed an executive order stating the federal government does not recognize the existence of any other supposed genders.