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Justin Berfield is an American-born former actor, producer, and writer, who is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Resee in the TV sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle.”
Age, Early Life, and Education Background
Justin Tyler Berfield is a native of Agoura Hills, California, who was born under the Pisces zodiac sign on 25 February 1986, which makes him 37 years old as of 2023. He was born to Gail Berfield and Erick ‘Rick’ Berfield, and is of Ashkenazi Jewish roots. He is the younger brother of Lorne Michael Berfield (born on 7 September 1982) who is also an actor known for his performance in the film “Double Blast” and the TV series “Someone Like Me” and “Evening Shade.” Justin appeared in a coffee TV commercial for Folgers when he was five years old, and went on to appear in at least 20 more commercials when he was still a child. For his numerous appearances in advertisements, Berfield was nicknamed ‘The Commercial Kid.’
Justin hasn’t revealed anything about his educational background.
Facts and Interests
Two weeks before he celebrated his 18th birthday – on 7 February 2004 – Berfield appeared in his 100th episode of the TV series “Malcolm in the Middle.” He shortly afterwards finished shooting the 100th episode of the series “Unhappily Ever After,” which made him the youngest actor to ever appear in at least 100 episodes of two series.
The actor was selected as the Ronald McDonald House charities’ National Youth Ambassador in 2000 and he held the position for two years. In 2002, he donated $100,000 to the organization’s Children’s Day benefit.
Although Justin is younger than his “Malcolm in the Middle” co-star, Frankie Muniz, he plays his older sibling in the show.
Justin is very physically active and has trained in Tang Soo Do karate.
He has known Haley Giraldo, the daughter of the American singer-songwriter, Pat Benatar, since childhood.
The “Malcolm in the Middle” star shares the same birthday as the “Harry Potter” franchise actors, Oliver Phelps and James Phelps.
He’s an outdoorsy person who enjoys fishing.
TV Appearances
Berfield made his TV debut as Bob Bowman in the NBC sitcom “The Good Life” in 1994. 1994 also saw him appear in the sitcoms “Hardball” and “The Boys Are Back.” In 1995, Justin rose to prominence for his portrayal of Ross Malloy, the youngest and arguably sanest member of the Malloys in The WB sitcom “Unhappily Ever After.” The sitcom is centered around the Malloy family, which is headed by a schizophrenic dad named Jack, who discusses his troubles with a talking stuffed bunny, Mr. Floppy. Justin appeared in 100 episodes during his four-year stint in the show, and shared the screen with Geoff Pierson, who plays Jack Malloy, Kevin Connolly (portrays Ryan Malloy), Nikki Cox (Tiffany Malloy), and Stephanie Hodge (Jennifer Malloy).
Berfield landed his next career-defining role in 2000, as Reese Wilkerson, the older brother of the protagonist (Frankie Muniz), who is a mild sociopath, mischievous trickster, and slow-witted bully in the Fox sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle”. The sitcom is about a youthful boy, Malcolm, who lives in a dysfunctional family and often struggles with various issues normal children face. Malcolm goes through each day dealing with stingy neighbors, girls, and his pungent and bewildered family. Justin shared the screen with Muniz, Bryan Cranston, Erik Per Sullivan, and Jane Kaczmarek while appearing in 151 episodes from 2000 to 2006. Concurrently, in 2004, Justin voiced Gill in two episodes of the Disney Channel animated action comedy, “Kim Possible.” He went on to voice Ving in an episode of the Nickelodeon animated TV series “The Fairly OddParents.” In 2010, he appeared in an episode of the Fox sitcom “Sons of Tucson.”
Film Appearances
Berfield made his film debut as Timmy Blair in the 1998 direct-to-video comedy “Mom, Can I Keep Her?” He appeared in two more films including “Invisible Mom 2” before the century ended. In 2001 and 2002, he appeared in the comedy “Max Keeble’s Big Move” and “Who’s Your Daddy?” respectively. Justin retired from acting in 2010.
Writing, Production, and Other Works
In 2005, Berfield produced several episodes of the TV series “Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive.” He was the executive producer of the TV film “The Pet Detective” in 2007 and in 2010, he produced 13 episodes of the TV series “Sons of Tucson.” In 2012, Berfield produced three projects including the TV special “Virgin Produced: Comedy Vault.” Moreover, he served as the executive producer of the TV series “Relatively Famous: Ranch Rules.” Berfield wrote eight episodes of the TV series “Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive.”
Justin partnered with his friend, Jason Felts to create the production firms, J2TV and J2 Pictures in 2004. He is the co-founder and the Chief Creative Officer of the TV, film, and entertainment division of Sir Richard Branson’s British Virgin Group called Virgin Produced. Felts serves as the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Awards and Nominations
Out of the nine awards he has been nominated for, Berfield has won two. In 2000, he scooped a joint YoungStar Award for Best Young Ensemble Cast – Television for his performance in “Malcolm in the Middle” and he shared it with Erik Per Sullivan, Frankie Muniz, and Christopher Masterson. Berfield also won a Young Artist Award for Best Ensemble in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) for his performance in the same sitcom in 2003. For his praised performance in “Unhappily Ever After,” Berfield was nominated for a YoungStar Award (1999) and two Young Artist Awards (1998 and 1999).
Berfield is active on Instagram (@justinberfield), with at least 235,000 followers. His Twitter and Facebook accounts have around 50,000 and 15,000 followers respectively.
Personal Life
Berfield is a married man, having exchanged vows with Liza Berfield in 2017. The couple has one daughter, but he hasn‘t disclosed her name.
Rumors and Controversies
Berfield’s sexuality became the subject of controversy, because of his association with his friend
and business partner, Felts, who is openly gay. Felts and Justin often appear together in public places and at parties.
Previously, there were rumors that Justin had died, which fortunately turned out to be a lie, and he is very much alive and seemingly in good health as of 2023.
Height, Weight, and Physical appearance
Berfield is of Caucasian ethnicity, and has a set of hazel eyes, and brown hair. He’s 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall and weighs approximately 160lbs (73kgs).
Net Worth
Berfield has accumulated a good sum from his multi-faceted career in the showbiz industry. He’s reputedly worth approximately $10 million as of 2023.
Recently, the Agoura Hills native bought a beachside condo in Malibu, California. Moreover, he previously bought a Calabasas-based house, in which the scenes of the reality series “Newlyweds” were shot. The house was priced at around $3.75 million, but he hasn’t disclosed the amount that he paid for it.
