Business
Hilary Duff Defends Mother Susan as ‘Supportive’ After Frankie Muniz Called Her ‘Super Intense’ Stage Mom
Hilary Duff came to the defense of her mother and former manager, Susan Duff, on Monday, March 16, 2026, insisting she was “never pushed” into acting and describing their close working relationship as largely positive, despite recent resurfaced comments from her former costar Frankie Muniz labeling Susan “super intense” and the “epitome of a stage mom.”
In an exclusive interview with People magazine, Duff addressed the long-standing tension stemming from Muniz’s October 2025 podcast appearance, where he detailed how Susan’s involvement during the casting and production of their 2003 film “Agent Cody Banks” strained — and ultimately ended — his friendship with Duff.
“I was never pushed into acting,” Duff said firmly. “My mom was my manager, and it was nice having her at work — for better or for worse. She was supportive, and I loved having that security.”
The comments mark Duff’s first public response to Muniz’s remarks, which gained renewed attention in recent weeks amid ongoing discussions about child stardom and parental involvement in Hollywood. Duff emphasized that her entry into the industry felt organic and driven by her own interests.
Susan Duff, who managed both Hilary and her older sister Haylie’s careers, moved the family from Texas to California when Hilary was 6 to pursue show business opportunities. Hilary’s breakthrough came with the Disney Channel series “Lizzie McGuire” in 2001, followed by the “Agent Cody Banks” spy comedy, where she starred opposite Muniz.
Muniz, now 40, recounted on “The Joe Vulpis Podcast” last fall that he and Duff had been close friends during their early Hollywood days. He described Duff as “so cool” and said they had “an awesome relationship.” However, he claimed Susan interfered when he casually mentioned the “Agent Cody Banks” audition to her while visiting Duff’s dressing room on the “Lizzie McGuire” set.
Muniz said Susan aggressively pursued the role for her daughter, contacting casting directors and pushing for Hilary’s involvement. He called her actions overstepping and “intense,” attributing the fallout to that incident.
“I look back at it now, and I go like: ‘What a dumb…’ I regret not just continuing to be friends with her,” Muniz said in the podcast. “We were friends. We had a great friendship for such a long time. And I let her mom… It pissed me off.”
He added that he hasn’t spoken to Duff since the last day of filming “Agent Cody Banks” in 2002, a silence spanning more than two decades. “I’ve never talked to Hilary since the last day of filming. I’ve not said one word to her since then.”
Muniz expressed regret over allowing the situation to sever their bond, noting he would “love to catch up” and discuss it openly, believing Duff may be unaware of the full details.
Duff’s defense arrives as she reflects on her own experiences as a child actor and now as a mother of four. In the People interview, she highlighted the balance of having family involved in her professional life, acknowledging it wasn’t always perfect but rejecting the notion of coercion.
“My mom believed in me, and that meant a lot,” Duff said. “I chose this path, and she helped guide it. There were tough moments, sure, but I don’t look back with resentment.”
The exchange revives conversations about stage parents in entertainment, a topic that has drawn scrutiny in recent years with accounts from former child stars about pressure, boundaries and long-term impacts. Muniz, who stepped away from acting for years to pursue racing and other interests before returning, has spoken candidly about his own industry’s challenges, including advising his son against entering show business.
Duff, 38, has maintained a steady career trajectory, transitioning from teen idol to actress, singer, entrepreneur and reality TV personality. She recently starred in projects and continues to release music, with her holiday hits and classic tracks remaining popular.
Neither Duff nor Muniz indicated plans for a public reconciliation, though Muniz’s expressed desire to reconnect leaves the door open. Representatives for both declined further comment beyond the published interviews.
The resurfacing of the decades-old anecdote underscores how past Hollywood experiences continue to shape public perceptions of child stardom. For Duff, the moment served as an opportunity to affirm her agency in her career and credit her mother’s role without apology.
As Duff promotes ongoing ventures and family life, her measured response highlights a nuanced view of the support system that propelled her to fame — one she views as protective rather than overbearing.
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Business
U POWER LIMITED Achieves Significant Milestone in Revolutionizing Thailand’s Heavy-Duty Truck Battery-Swapping Industry
U POWER Limited will launch its Hong Kong taxi battery-swapping operations in Q2 2026. The project aims to enhance commercial vehicle electrification and improve operational efficiency in high-density urban markets.
Hong Kong Taxi Battery-Swapping Operations Expected to Launch Soon
U POWER Limited, a provider of specialized solutions for next-generation energy networks and intelligent transportation systems, announced that, following its securing an order for 1,000 battery-swapping heavy-duty trucks in Thailand and completing production of the first batch of vehicles, its Hong Kong taxi battery-swapping project is also expected to complete station deployment and commence operations in the second quarter of 2026. This development marks a new stage of full commercial rollout for U POWER LIMITED’s battery-swapping business for commercial vehicles across the Asian market.
Successful Validation of Commercial Use Cases Supports Scaled Growth of the Battery-Swapping Model
As one of the earliest technology companies in the industry to invest in the R&D and commercialization of battery-swapping solutions, U POWER LIMITED began promoting its UOTTA battery-swapping model for commercial vehicles in 2020 and achieved proven success in mainland China. After becoming the world’s first publicly listed battery-swapping technology company in 2023, U POWER accelerated its international expansion strategy, entering into partnerships with several major enterprises, including Thailand’s SUSCO (Susco Public Company Limited) and Whale Logistics Group.
In 2025, the company successfully launched a taxi battery-swapping business in Phuket, Thailand, and introduced its UNEX heavy-duty truck battery-swapping project to the Thai market, becoming the first company in overseas markets to achieve scaled commercial operations of battery swapping for commercial transport vehicles.
Further Advancing Hong Kong Taxi Battery-Swapping Project
U POWER LIMITED began laying out its strategy for the Hong Kong taxi battery-swapping market in 2024. In June 2025, the company completed Hong Kong’s first demonstration battery-swapping station capable of commercial operation. Since then, it has continued discussions with taxi industry partners regarding the broader rollout of battery-swapping taxis.
After identifying a vehicle model suitable for the Hong Kong market in October 2024, the company conducted ongoing road-testing and battery-swapping compatibility validation, while completing the relevant certifications in accordance with the Transport Department’s market access requirements for taxi vehicles. According to the company, this batch of battery-swapping taxis has now met the conditions for on-road operation. In parallel with the construction of battery-swapping stations, U POWER is targeting market launch in the second quarter of 2026.
Focused on Commercial Vehicle Battery Swapping and Optimistic About the Hong Kong Market
Li Jia, Founder and CEO of U POWER LIMITED, said that the company has become an undisputed leader in the ecological development and commercialization of battery-swapping solutions for commercial vehicles in overseas markets outside mainland China.
“Leveraging our AI-driven energy management system and standardized battery-swapping infrastructure, we are building an ecosystem for a wide range of commercial battery-swapping vehicles and advancing the electrification of commercial transportation,” Li said.
Li added that Hong Kong is one of the world’s most representative high-density urban transportation markets, where the taxi sector places a strong premium on operating efficiency. Compared with conventional charging, U POWER’s battery-swapping model is therefore better suited to the Hong Kong market.
Property owners do not need to install more land-intensive charging facilities or invest in costly grid upgrades. For taxi operators and fleet managers, there is no need to worry about battery performance degradation or daily battery maintenance, nor about range limitations affecting driver recruitment. In addition, the battery-swapping model can be integrated with a battery banking system, making day-to-day operating costs more economical.
For these reasons, the company believes battery swapping will gain broader acceptance within Hong Kong’s taxi industry, and it will continue working alongside industry stakeholders to support the electrification transition of Hong Kong taxis.
Source : U POWER LIMITED Makes Major Breakthrough in Thailand’s Heavy-Duty Truck Battery-Swapping Market
The information provided in this article was created by Cision PR Newswire, our news partner. The author's opinions and the content shared on this page are their own and may not necessarily represent the perspectives of Thailand Business News.
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The U.S. housing market accelerated in March despite elevated mortgage rates reducing some of the affordability improvement the market had recently seen, according to a new report.
Zillow released its market report for March which found that newly pending home listings increased 4.6% from a year ago in March.
That increased the number of listings to the second-largest monthly total since the end of the pandemic boom in August 2022, which Zillow said was a positive sign for the market as the home shopping season begins in earnest.
The housing market’s uptick occurred despite mortgage rates increasing from 5.98% at the end of February to 6.38% in late March, according to data from Freddie Mac. Excluding taxes and insurance, the typical mortgage payment increased 1.5% from February, which undercut some of the affordability improvements the market had seen.
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The housing market is showing signs it’s picking up despite mortgage rates rising higher again. (Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Zillow found that the monthly mortgage payment on a typical U.S. home was $1,789 in March, given a 20% down payment, after excluding taxes and insurance. While that figure rose on a monthly basis, it was 4.4% lower than last year, according to the report.
There were 1.23 million homes listed for sale in March. Inventory rose 9.5% from February and active inventory was 4.2% higher than it was a year earlier.
The number of new for sale listings totaled 384,854 in March, an increase of 0.1% from a year ago and 35.6% in February.
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Mortgage rates have risen lately, curbing some of the affordability improvements seen earlier this year. (Getty Images)
Newly pending listings – a figure that measures listings which changed from for sale to pending status rather than closed sales – shows 4.6% growth from a year earlier, and a 29.8% increase over February.
A total of 300,398 homes were sold in March, according to a preliminary reading from the Zillow sales count nowcast. That’s up 3.7% from a year ago and 25.2% from February, though those figures will be revised mid-month.
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The number of homes sold in March was up on both an annual and monthly basis. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Buyers and sellers have been navigating uncertainty and market volatility in some form since the onset of the pandemic, and this month’s concern over energy prices is no different,” said Mischa Fisher, chief economist at Zillow. “However, we have persistent signals that the market has turned a corner.”
“Pent-up demand from three years of low sales volume and winter storms in January and February, along with the tailwind from lower mortgage rates earlier in the year, seem to have buoyed the market as home shopping season kicked off. In particular, the rapid acceleration of daily page views per listing we saw in March was a noteworthy improvement over the dormant market of recent years,” Fischer added.
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