Styles change, photos of haircuts that you begged your mother for will be mocked in ten years time, and nothing lasts forever… that is, except for Lizzie McGuire. Somehow this show about a tween girl navigating the treacherous waters of middle school with her two best friends and sassy internal monologue (delivered via cartoon/medieval Bitmoji) has managed to remain seen as one of the most beloved programmes of all time.

There’s something remarkably different about Lizzie. Maybe it’s the fact that her parents have actual roles in her life other than being the typical Disney Channel “bumbling grounding machines." Perhaps it’s the fact that there is no grating laugh track to attempt to ignore when it sounds off every 10 seconds. Or maybe it’s the fact that it’s a well written, engaging, and thoroughly entertaining show with a decent mix of heartfelt emotional moments and slapstick comedy. I might be biased.

But behind every good show is a team of producers, set dressers, writers, and editors who work tirelessly and silently to create the shows that we know and love. Casting dilemmas, infighting, and financial conflicts are just a few of the many divergences that can arise when producing a major television show. With everything that goes into making a show ready for the small screen, there’s guaranteed to be a few behind the scenes facts that evades even the most die hard fans notice.

So without further ado, here are fifteen mind-blowing things you never knew from the set of Lizzie McGuire.

15 Big Bad Mama Duff

There are many tropes in Hollywood… brunettes go blonde, curvy and chubby-cheeked actresses suddenly become thin when their careers begin taking off, and the majority of child stars turn to substances to cope with whatever traumas they were exposed to during their early career. It’s so common that it is practically a cliche. Well, Mama Duff is an old-fashioned Texas mom who did everything she could to shield her babies from the cruel and sadistic men that chewed up every fresh-faced kid and spat them out. Mama Duff refused to let Hilary (nor her sister, Haylie) attend any big Hollywood parties (which we notorious for their deviancy). She also made sure that Hilary was never left alone with any producer or Disney executive, and made sure to have the final say on all contracts.

14 A Lizzie By Any Other Actress

By the time Disney began casting for the show that would later be known as Lizzie McGuire, Hilary Duff was just about finished with Hollywood. She had gotten a few roles under her belt but she was facing near constant rejection. Hilary ended up being recasted for the few roles that she was offered. She was burnt out, but she agreed to do one last audition. However, Hilary wasn’t the only actress in talks for the role. Darcy’s Wild Life star Sara Paxton and Freaky Friday’s Lindsay Lohan we also being considered for the role that, after 5 auditions, would eventually go to Hilary.

But Hilary struggled with the part at first, which lead Disney to send her to an acting coach. Mama Duff freaked out, worrying that this was a sign that her daughter was about to lose another role. But the coach helped young Hilary find herself in the role and the rest is history.

13 What Were They Thinking?

While Lizzie’s illustrated internal dialogue is incredibly unique and entertaining, it is honestly a curious stylistic choice for a tween sitcom to make. Why would they provide their main character with this sarcastic cartoon alter ego without really making an effort to explain its presence? Does anyone else have a mental Bitmoji narrating their every thought? And why do all of the early promotional images contain photos of Lizzie looking like she’s daydreaming and staring off into the distance? Well, it turns out that the show was originally going to be named What’s Lizzie Thinking? And it was going to have a much heavier emphasis on Lizzie’s internal dialogue and her relationship with her mother. In fact, the illustrated elements of the sassy inner monologue weren’t even added until later in the show's development as the thoughts originally existed as a simple voiceover.

12 One Awesome McGuire

One of Lizzie’s main traits is that she is an absolute disaster when it comes to walking and talking at the same time. Nearly every single episode features Lizzie falling over, smashing her face into her locker, or displaying her clumsiness in some way, shape, or form. And, though she is incredibly clumsy, Lizzie is also very athletic and excels at football, gymnastics, and several amazing stunts in the episode entitled Lizzie’s Eleven. And what makes those stunts even more amazing is that Hilary performed them all herself. Every slip, every fall, and every spontaneous cartwheel was performed by Hilary herself. I honestly don’t know whether I am more impressed by her gymnastic skills or her ability to believably knock herself over for several takes in a row.

11 Lizzie’s All Grown Up

While Disney is known to handle the occasional hard hitting topic (like eating disorders, divorce, and bullying,) their shows usually tend to avoid more serious topics in favour of focusing on the light side of adolescence. But Lizzie McGuire was one of the most successful tween shows of all time and there was no way that anyone was going to let that cash cow out of the field. The writers of the show actually intended to create a continuation series which would follow Lizzie, Gordo, and Miranda through the perils of high school for the ABC network (which is known for handling serious topics like teen substance use and pregnancy). But they were unable to create a contract which pleased all parties and the spin-off was discarded.

Even though I would love more Lizzie in my life, I’ve got to say that I don’t know how I would feel about watching Lizzie get wild at a house party...

10 Boys Cry Too

While I do have to applaud other Disney Channel shows for their attempts to discuss how body insecurities affect young girls, they often forget about the issues that young boys struggle with. But not Lizzie McGuire. In fact, Lizzie McGuire is actually one of the first Disney sitcoms to feature storylines centered around male insecurity. The episodes in question include those that follow Gordo struggling to see himself as a man due to constriction masculine ideals (one focuses on his height while the other focuses on his religion) and those that follow Larry Tudgeman, who the other characters often regard as a joke, learning how to fit in with his peers. These storylines were not only unprecedented for the Disney Channel at the time, but also incredibly important. Young boys need positive affirmations too.

9 A Blast From The Past

Parents in kids' shows are often terribly written, entirely absent, or they are clueless to the point that they are completely useless to the plot. But the writers of Lizzie McGuire did their best to include her parents in her life. She goes to them with her problems and is never afraid to turn to them when she is in over her head. And they never miss an opportunity to tell the tales of their youth (complete with childhood photos and visual flashbacks). During a rewatch, I noticed that Sam (Lizzie’s dad) looked quite familiar in one of his flashback images. I did a little research and it turns out that the man who plays Lizzie’s father also played one of the nerds in the classic 80s cult film Revenge of the Nerds. I will never get the image of Lizzie’s dad tricking a girl into being with him while wearing a Darth Vader mask out of my head.

8 Measurable Growth

One of the greatest things about Lizzie McGuire is how well written it is. If you watch the episodes in chronological order, you can see the characters grow, change, and mature throughout the show's episodes. Lizzie becomes less obsessed with popularity and looking like celebrities, gains the ability to stand up for herself and others, makes friends from all cliques, gets a stronger idea of her own identity, finds her footing, and favours a close and honest relationship with her parents rather than resorting to lying in order to get her way. Ethan, Larry, and Kate become real characters and figures in Lizzie’s life rather than basic stereotypes. Gordo learns that he doesn’t have to try so hard to go against the grain, and Miranda goes to Mexico and never comes back.

7 Stone Cold Fox

Have you ever rewatched the early episodes of Lizzie McGuire and found yourself drowning in multiple questions, such as where did Danny Kessler go and why is Ethan such a jerk? Well, it turns out that Danny was originally supposed to be the girl's love interest and Ethan was supposed to be a bully (which is why he is often seen pushing Gordo around). Seriously, take note of how Ethan acts in the first few episodes. He is always on Gordo’s case, threatens Matt when he accidentally takes the wrong bus, and is just an all around pain. However, for unknown reasons, Danny Kessler vanished and Ethan became the lovable idiot that we all know and love. Danny did get his redemption though, when he achieved a brief mention in the dress-making scene of the Lizzie McGuire Movie. But Ethan will always be known as Lizzie’s first real crush. Sorry Danny.

6 Disorder For Days

Have you ever looked up the official episode lists for Lizzie McGuire? If you ever have/will, you will notice that they are completely out of order. It doesn’t matter as the show is mainly episodic, but looking at the series' pilot and finale episodes can be quite confusing.

Pool Party is the clear pilot episode, as it features a teen movie style narrative introduction that introduces all main characters (including their personality, respective clique, and relationship to Lizzie). However, it is actually listed as the third episode. The episode in which Lizzie exposes Kate for stuffing her bra is the first. The official final episode of the show is Magic Train (the episode where the gang sees a kids' show live and are bullied for it) even though the clear finale is Bye, Bye Hillridge Junior High as it features both their graduation and Lizzie’s first kiss with Gordo (this episode is listed as episode 54 out of 65).

5 Kate Doesn’t Like U

What was Lizzie’s big bad enemy called again? I think it begins with a K… Kate something… don’t tell me, it’s on the tip of my tongue! Wait… was her name Kate Sanders or Kate Saunders? Turns out, it was both. Yes, you read that correctly. Kate’s last name is spelt both as Sanders and Saunders. For some unknown reason, Kate’s name changes continually throughout the show. Sometimes she is a catty cheerleader known by the surname “Saunders” while other times she is a major pain in Lizzie’s behind and goes by “Sanders” instead. The weirdest part of this change is that it goes back and forth throughout the series, randomly rather than beginning one way and being quietly changed behind the scenes later on.

4 Seeing Double

While showing my fiancé The Lizzie McGuire Movie for the fourth time, he turned to me with a look of utter shock and confusion on his face. “Wait!” He exclaimed, “Is Hilary playing Isabella too?” While it is incredibly obvious to everyone else in the world that Hilary Duff played both Lizzie McGuire and her Italian doppelganger, Isabella Parigi, in the cinematic follow up to the TV series, many people might be shocked to know that while they share a face, Isabella and Lizzie don’t share a singing voice. Isabella’s singing voice was provided by Hilary’s older sister, Haylie Duff. Haylie is no stranger to the world of Lizzie McGuire as she had actually made several guest appearances on the show itself as the recurring character Amy (Kate’s snarky and party-loving older cousin).

3 Mad Dog McGuire

One of the best episodes of Lizzie McGuire is the one where Lizzie gets down and dirty with the mad dogs of Hillridge Junior High. She kicks the boys' butts at both the presidential fitness challenge and a few aggressive games of flag football. But did you know that episode was actually based on true events? Hilary found herself in hot water a few times during her public school career. She would often become incredibly competitive and aggressive when playing sports in gym class . She was often forced to play with the boys. The writers of the show decide to take Hilary’s real-life struggles and turn them into a moralistic episode. It emphasized the fact that girls can be both feminine and athletic without having to sacrifice either side in order to gain the approval of others.

2 Disney Wasn’t Ready

When I was a little kid, I thought that any two adults I saw on TV were in a relationship unless stated otherwise. Until they started dating men, I admittedly believed that Aunt Hilda and Zelda on Sabrina the Teenage Witch were married rather than sisters. But my younger self's obsession with shipping actually revealed a relationship that Disney tried to hide. Remember Sam’s baseball friends? The two men who own a chimp together that often just show up at the McGuire house? I always thought that they were together and that that monkey was their “child.” It turns out I was right. The writers wanted to feature them as a gay couple. Disney said no and refused to allow any storylines which would out them as a couple. I hope that, wherever they are, they (and their pet monkey) are happy and thriving.

1 Things Got Dangerous

When does someone become “famous?” Is it the first time they get recognized in public? Or is it when there mere presence creates a mob of obsessed fans to appear out of thin air? During the early days of Lizzie McGuire, Hilary’s team assumed Hilary was still just an ordinary girl. They allowed her to go to a mall like any other 13 year old girl did in the early 2000s. Someone recognized her and a huge, screaming, and horrifyingly obsessed mob of fans appeared. Hilary had to be picked up and carried out of the frenzy by her security. People were beginning to knock each other over in attempts to get to the star. The situation became incredibly dangerous. It was at that moment when they realized that this was it. This was Hilary’s big break and after years of fighting for her dream, she had finally made it.