Hilary Duff Teases What Her 'Lizzie McGuire' Animated Alter Ego Will Look Like in Upcoming Revival (Exclusive)
The actress dished on her upcoming Disney + revival series.
With the long-awaited Lizzie McGuire revival currently in production, Hilary Duff is looking forward to giving fans a look at what her beloved character's life is like now that she's an adult.
ET's Katie Krause caught up with Duff at the Love Leo Rescue second annual Cocktails for a Cause event at Rolling Greens Los Angeles on Wednesday, and the actress excitedly dished on what fans can expect and how it feels to be playing Lizzie McGuire once again.
"It feels so exciting. It's a dream come true," Duff marveled. "We started filming and it was a long time coming… We're having a lot of fun and it just feels surreal."
It's been over 15 years since the beloved Disney Channel show aired its final episode, and Duff says she was attracted to the idea of a revival because it gave her the chance to play a character whose challenges mirrored those that she's faced herself.
"That was part of the draw for me for coming back was the struggles that I feel as a 30-year-old," Duff shared.
While the actress admitted that she couldn't reveal too much about the show before it airs on Disney+, she teased how Lizzie has changed since the original series.
"She has gained a lot of confidence and she has a really cool career," Duff said. "She's still going to be faced with challenging things, where, in middle school, those challenging things seemed simple and funny but relatable at the time. Now, in your 30s, it's gonna be the same way but slightly heavier. [She'll have] slightly bigger things to deal with."
"I think it's really gonna be fun to go on the journey with her at 30," Duff added. "It's the same Lizzie, but as an adult."
However, the actress said that one thing that isn't going to grow up with Lizzie is her animated alter ego that served as a narrator of sorts, and a manifestation of her inner monologue on the original series.
"She's gonna stay the same," Duff revealed, confirming that the animated version of Lizzie will indeed have a presence in the revival. "She has an epic return and I am so excited. She's really gonna be a lot of the comic relief in the show."
With the show in the works, some celebs who were big fans of the original series have been coming forward looking to be a part of the revival -- including Lizzo, who tweeted back in August, "Lemme get a cameo?" to a report about the show getting greenlit.
Duff herself replied, tweeting, "Ummmmm duh! Hired! Animated Lizzie might explode! Saw you in Brooklyn ♥️?♥️?♥️?♥️?♥️?♥️DEAD."
"I think that would be a dream," Duff told ET on having the "Truth Hurts" songstress as a guest star on the show. "Obviously she's the coolest."
Meanwhile, while not busy shooting the new show, Duff is also working hard to support the foundations and charities that mean the most to her -- such as the Love Leo Rescue group, a non-profit canine adoption organization.
For their second annual Cocktails for a Cause gala, Duff served as host for the night, and praised the group, telling ET, "The work that they do is so amazing, and I am so inspired by them."
Duff explained that two of her dogs were adopted through Love Leo Rescue, adding, "I don't know what we would do without them."
As for the hotly anticipated Lizzie McGuire revival, no premiere date has been set, but the series is set to air exclusively on the Disney+ streaming service, which debuts Nov. 12.
RELATED CONTENT:
