Lizzie McGuire's little brother looks unrecognisable over 20 years on from show

If you grew up in the noughties, you'll probably remember one of Disney's hit shows - Lizzie McGuire. It first aired over 22 years ago, and now the characters are all grown up

View 3 Images

Nothing brings back noughties nostalgia much like Lizzie McGuire.

The Disney hit show, that first hit our screens back in 2001, captured the hearts of teens across the world thanks to its relatable storylines and characters. Centred around the character of Lizzie, played by Hilary Duff, we saw the high schooler navigate her teenage years in the best way possible.

What made the show more memorable is that Hilary also voiced an animated version of Lizzie who was often seen performing soliloquies to show what her character was thinking and feeling. The series came to an end in 2004 and, over the the three years, a whooping 65 episodes were produced.

Later in 2003, The Lizzie McGuire Movie was also released, which saw Lizzie travel to Italy for the adventure of a lifetime. The words "sing to me Paolo" should be enough to help memories of the movie come flooding back.

View 3 Images

While Hilary Duff still appears on our screens quite often, one person from the show you may have forgotten about is her little brother, Matt McGuire. The role was played by Jake Thomas, now 34, and you'd never believe how different he looks more than 20 years on from when the show first aired.

Back when he was younger, Jake bagged a Young Artist Award for supporting actor for his performance as Martin Swinton in A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001). He also starred in Cory in the House (2007–08) where he took on the role of Jason Stickler.

More recently, he was actually set to reprise his role of Matt McGuire on Disney+, as the show was meant to make a big come back. Sadly for Lizzie fans, plans to re-vamp the show didn't go ahead, and it was cancelled before it could hit our screens back in 2020.

View 3 Images

Even though you may think you haven't seen him for a while, Jake has actually popped up in a number of shows throughout the years. For example, he played Eric Miller in the Without a Trace episode "Wannabe", and also portrayed a young Hugh Hefner in the television film Hefner: Unauthorized.

He's also appeared in Storytellers, S.W.A.T and NCIS. As well as this, Jake spends his time working as a commercial photographer and director too.

In other words, he's come a long way since being known as Lizzie's "annoying" little brother. Jake is now all grown up, but he's still making his mark in the industry in lots of ways.

Ever since Lizzie McGuire left our screens, fans have been begging for the show to make a return. On X, one viewer wrote: "Still waiting for the Lizzie McGuire reboot to come back."

Another said: "I'd give anything in the world for Lizzie McGuire to come back." And a third added: "Justice for Lizzie McGuire." It's something we'd definitely love to see happen too!