Reason why Malcolm in the Middle actor turned down 'buckets of money' for reboot

Malcolm in the Middle star Erik Per Sullivan is said to have turned down 'buckets of money' to reprise his role as Dewey in the reboot of the show.

The hugely anticipated reboot is launching on Disney+ this Friday (April 10) in the form of a four-part series hitting the popular streaming platform.

The reboot sees a grown-up Malcolm and his siblings get together for the 40th wedding anniversary party of parents Hal and Lois.

While the likes of Jane Kaczmarek, Bryan Cranston and Frankie Muniz are making a return for the reboot, one name who's not returning is Sullivan, who played Dewey in the original series some two decades ago.

And that's despite the fact he was reportedly thrown a ton of cash his way to return as well.

Speaking about the actor's absence from the reboot in an interview with The Guardian, Kaczmarek said: "They offered him buckets of money to come back, and he just said: 'No thank you'."

The reboot is releasing later this week (Disney/Hulu)

Meanwhile, Cranston was asked by Entertainment Weekly about Sullivan's potential return and he revealed how he was met with a polite no after posing the question to the Dewey actor.

"I talked to Erik, and I said, 'Hey, we got the show! It's going to come back.' He goes, 'Oh, that's fantastic!' And I go, 'Yeah, so we're looking forward to having you back.' He goes, 'Oh, no, no, I don't want to do it. But it's fantastic'," Cranston said.

Following a few roles in the years after the conclusion of the original run of Malcolm in the Middle, Sullivan decided to take a step back from Hollywood and hasn't been seen in a film role since.

Dewey actor Erik Per Sullivan has reportedly turned down a big pay check to return (20th Century Fox)

Muniz has previously spoken about his former colleagues career choices, telling the with YouTube channel Malcolm France: "To be honest, I don't know what he's up to. I hate to say that because I've talked to him a few times since the show ended.

"I've talked to his parents a lot. When I was in the band, we went and played in the city where he lives and his parents came to the show, but unfortunately he couldn't make it.

"So I got to talk to them, and he's been all over doing a lot of different things.

"But one thing I know, some actors or some people just got to do it when they were a kid and then they wanted to experience other things and kind of live a more normal life out of the spotlight.”