Everybody Loves the Weird Kid From ‘The Middle’

TV has always had a soft spot for geeks and oddballs, and critics zeroed in on the actor and role when “The Middle” made its debut in September. “Atticus Shaffer is the breakout,” Joanne Ostrow of The Denver Post wrote last August. “The kiddo is hilarious.” But the gushing has grown so loud — “Just Love That Little Brick on ‘The Middle,’ ” read a Miami Herald headline in March — that the show’s writers appear to have started building episodes more squarely around that character. To help hype its season finale on May 19, “The Middle” landed Ms. White. Guess who all of her scenes are with?

“People just like Brick because he follows the beat of his own drummer,” Atticus said. “He’s different, and he’s quirky, and people seem to think that’s adorable. Trust me because I know. It’s my life.”

Brick, right down to the whisper, is based on the son of Eileen Heisler, who created “The Middle” with DeAnn Heline. (The two women, whose credits include “Murphy Brown” and “How I Met Your Mother,” have been writing partners since meeting in college.) “The funniest things come from reality,” Ms. Heisler said.

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“All I know,” Atticus said, “is that I feel extremely blessed to be on TV. It’s a hard job, but real life is harder. Truth be told, playgrounds can be war zones.”

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Tags: Actor, Arts, Atticus Shaffer, Eileen Heisler, Miami Herald, Middle, Television, Writers Resources