Lizzie McGuire is an American comedy television series created by Terri Minsky that premiered on Disney Channel on January 12, 2001.
The series stars Hilary Duff as the titular character who learns to navigate the personal and social issues of her teenage years.
The series began production in association with Disney Channel, but entered a hiatus after Minsky's departure and did not resume; the revival was officially canceled in December 2020.
Episodes depict Lizzie's transition into adolescence at home and school, including the friends' rivalry with their classmate Kate, and affections for Ethan.
[2][3] The premise for the series was based on a script previously written by Minsky, which featured the main character's inner thoughts and emotions as narration.
[6] Rather than drawing a mere caricature of Duff, she tried to capture the actress's essence by giving Lizzie's alter ego a more "hip" look: cropped shirts with trim pants and high flip-flops.
[7] The drawings were digitally inked and painted using the Animo 3.1 software and then composited into the live-action footage at Disney's Los Angeles studio.
[10][12] The company was interested in transitioning the program into a high school-centered series for ABC and expanding the franchise with a further film, while Duff was receiving offers for lucrative roles with other studios.
[10] In November 2004, a pilot for an intended spin-off was ordered, which was to center on Miranda's younger sister Stevie Sanchez and her Latino family.
[18] In October 2019, it was announced that Thomas, Todd and Carradine would also return to the series, reprising their roles as Matt, Jo and Sam McGuire respectively.
[22] Minsky departed as the showrunner of the revival in January 2020 after the first two episodes of the series had been filmed, due to creative differences with Disney.
[37] Walt Disney Pictures released a film based on the series, The Lizzie McGuire Movie, on May 2, 2003, in the United States.
[38] Set after the conclusion of the series and her junior high graduation, the film follows Lizzie and her classmates on a school trip to Rome, Italy.
[50] Reviewing the series premiere in 2001, Laura Fries of Variety called the program "good-natured", and praised the writers' ability to include adolescent vernacular and pop culture references.
[3] A review on the DVDizzy blog called early episodes "clever, funny, and pretty sincere", but suggested that the show later suffered from a creative decline in favor of more celebrity guest appearances.
[52] Susan Benner of TV Guide praised the filming style of the show, and explained that the writing and pop-culture references would appeal to children.
[53] Katie Minard of Entertainment Weekly listed "Picture Day" as the best episode of the series in her 2016 ranking, arguing that it has a relatable plot and an important moral.