Entertainment Books Memoirs Why Frankie Muniz Walked Off the Set of Malcolm in the Middle for 2 Episodes: 'It Was Worth It' Though "everyone was so afraid to stand up," the former series lead took a stand against "certain people" who made the set's environment toxic By Charlotte Phillipp Charlotte Phillipp Charlotte Phillipp is a Weekend Writer-Reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2024, and was previously an entertainment reporter at The Messenger. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 1, 2024 03:00PM EDT Frankie Muniz. Photo: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic Frankie Muniz's titular character on Malcolm in the Middle was absent for two consecutive episodes. Now, he is opening up about his reasoning why. The former child star, who is currently appearing on the Australian edition of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here, recently shared with his fellow castmates that he walked off the sitcom's set for two whole episodes due to tensions on set amid ongoing tension. "There were two episodes I’m not in. I walked off the set," he said, according to News.com.au. Per the outlet, Muniz told his costars that "certain people" had created a toxic environment on the sitcom's set that made the cast and crew scared of them. "Everyone was so afraid to stand up when certain people were controlling or rude or disrespectful," he said in the episode. "Like, they walked on pins and needles." Frankie Muniz Shares Why He'd Never Let Son Mauz, 3, Become a Child Actor: 'Insanely Negative Experiences' “I was so mortified by seeing people afraid to stand up for themselves, I was like, 'Say something,'" he continued. "I didn't care if they told me I was never going back, because it was worth it to me. ...It helped [that the show was based around me]." Though Muniz has tackled some acting parts since the series ended in 2006, he pivoted his career to become a race car driver and briefly co-hosted Dancing with the Stars: Juniors alongside Jordan Fisher. He's also been candid about the problems he experienced as a child actor. Last week, he told News.com.au that he felt that he never "fully fit in the Hollywood world" and was much happier after moving away from Los Angeles. "I never felt like I fully fit in the Hollywood world, even though I was in the world," he told the Australian outlet. "I was nominated for Emmys and Golden Globes, and I was going to all this stuff, and I was there, and I was like, how am I here?" MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE. 20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection "I hated LA, so I kind of stayed in my own little world, my own little bubble. And moving to Arizona, I did it on a whim, and I realized immediately that I started looking up," he added. "I started enjoying looking at trees and birds in the sky. Going to the grocery store was a fun thing. You don’t get that in LA. It’s a miserable experience." Muniz shares his 3-year-old son, Mauz, with wife Paige Price. Recently, the Agent Cody Banks star said he would "never let my kid go into the business" to become an actor. All About Frankie Muniz's Son Mauz Mosley Muniz Muniz also shared with Pedestrian TV on TikTok last week that he knows young actors who had bad experiences in the industry. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. "Not that I had a negative experience, because to be honest, my experience was 100% positive," he explained in the clip. "But I know so many people, friends that were close to me, that had such insanely negative experiences." "I just think it's an ugly world in general," he added. "I never cared about rejection, but there's a ton of rejection."