Malcolm and Stevie are back together!

Frankie Muniz and Craig Lamar Traylor played best friends on screen for seven seasons on the sitcom Malcolm in the middle. Now the prodigies are together again racer, A thriller that follows the titular computer genius (Muniz currently plays an adult genius) as he develops an AI life coach named Selenus (voiced by Marcia Gay Harden) to help him build self-confidence and find love. Only he realizes too late that he accidentally programmed his manipulative mother into the computer.

Weekly entertainment Get a first look at the film’s trailer, as well as an exclusive clip of Muniz and Traylor’s reunion, as well as behind-the-scenes footage of their time on set together.

The trailer shows Renner’s interactions with his AI life coach, how it helps him develop a relationship with attractive new neighbor Jamie (Violett Beane), and how things go wrong (with lots of blood) when the AI ​​instills in Renner a sense of paranoia .

For Muniz, the film is an opportunity to examine the benefits and risks of AI, a current topic in technology and culture. “It’s fun to be part of something that has AI at the forefront,” he tells EW. “My character tries to develop AI to help people and make the world a better place, but in the end I’m not entirely sure he succeeds.”

“The implication of the story is that no matter how good the intentions are with the AI, there is still a little bit of bias on the part of whoever created the AI,” he adds. “That will show up in the code, and good and bad can come from that. Personally, as Frankie, I am terrified of AI! What we’ve seen so far, what’s been developed and how things have evolved.” But I’m also the person who thinks the world was better before we had cell phones, so on a personal level I may not be the best person to ask.

Another clip also shows a brief interaction between Muniz and Traylor as he arrives in the elevator and walks down the hallway. Muniz helped recruit his old pal for the role.

“It was great to work with Craig Lamar Traylor again!” Muniz enthuses. “I mean, we have so many memories of it Malcolm in the middle and basically grew up together. It had been years since I had seen him and we had so much fun catching up on set.

“I was thrilled he could be there,” the actor continues. “It’s a very small role, but it’s definitely a cool little Easter egg for those who notice and see the connections. There aren’t many actors in the film, but I’m glad he’s one of them.”

Maybe this will lay the foundation for the two to get back together Malcolm in the middle revival that Disney+ has in the works.

Racer is Muniz’s first leading role in a feature film in seven years, most recently appearing in the horror film The black string in 2018. During this time he made a few television appearances, including as himself Harley Quinn And Totally Bellas, and in guest roles The newbie And New Amsterdam. But Racer marks a more significant return to the screen for him.

“When I first read Racer“I loved that I had the opportunity to get involved in the journey that he went through in history,” Muniz says. “It explores almost every emotion on the spectrum: from joy and happiness to sadness and depression to love, lust and euphoria” to pure anger and hate. I thought it would be an incredible challenge to portray.”

Muniz says the film also gave him the opportunity to immerse himself in a role in a new way. “I was a little nervous because I knew it would be harder to play Renner,” he notes. “But in the end, working on this film was an incredible experience. As strange as it may sound and you may not understand it when you see the film, but it was the first time as an actor that I had difficulty distinguishing film from real life in terms of emotions, what it is made it such a unique and unforgettable experience.

When the film hits theaters on February 7, Muniz promises plenty of shocks and thrills and advises audiences to stick around until the end.

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“What Robert Rippberger, the director, achieved on a tight schedule and an indie budget,” he reflects, “I think we made an incredible film that will shock people when they see it. And maybe they should stick through the credits too.” .”

Watch the trailer and clip above to find out more.