# Stuck in the Middle (TV series)
**Stuck in the Middle** is an American single-camera family sitcom that aired on [Disney Channel](https://www.edgepedia.org/disney-channel) from February 14, 2016 to July 23, 2018, following Harley Diaz, an inventive middle child in a Latino family of nine, as she finds creative ways to stand out among her six siblings[1](https://d23.com/a-to-z/stuck-in-the-middle-television/) • [2](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle). Created by Alison Brown with Linda Videtti Figueiredo as executive producer, the series ran for three seasons and made a Disney Channel lead of [Jenna Ortega](https://www.edgepedia.org/jenna-ortega), who later became widely known for the title role in Netflix's *[Wednesday](https://www.edgepedia.org/wednesday-tv-series)*[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/stuck_in_the_middle) • [4](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/young-jenna-ortega-outed-herself-great-candidate-for-wednesday-addams-still-in-disney-years).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Network and run | Disney Channel, February 14, 2016 to July 23, 2018, three seasons[1](https://d23.com/a-to-z/stuck-in-the-middle-television/) |
| Premise | Harley Diaz, the fourth of seven children, uses her inventions and ingenuity to stand out in a crowded household[2](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle) |
| Lead actor | Jenna Ortega as Harley Diaz, then known from *Jane the Virgin*[5](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/disney-channel-orders-latino-family-sitcom-toplined-jane-170031671.html) |
| Format | Single-camera family comedy told from the middle child's point of view, without a laugh track[6](https://cdnvideo.dolimg.com/cdn_assets/9f6fcdbeb1e53f4c21bc79da3395986880516fc6.pdf) |
| Episode count | 57 episodes in the standard episode listing; Deadline reported 59 produced in total[7](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_Stuck_in_the_Middle_episodes) • [8](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/stuck-middle-end-3-seasons-213256516.html) |
| Series finale | "Stuck in Harley's Quinceañera," July 23, 2018, watched by 0.92 million viewers[9](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/Stuck_in_Harley%27s_Quincea%C3%B1era) |
| Availability | Streaming on Disney+ in the United States and many other countries[10](https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-ac3a2eb3-c7b4-4780-a1f0-06570d0f117e) |
## Premise and characters
The series centers on Harley Diaz (Jenna Ortega), a twelve-year-old engineering whiz who is the fourth of seven children in a suburban household. Feeling overlooked between her older and younger siblings, she devises inventions and schemes to gain attention and solve the family's everyday problems[2](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle) • [11](https://www.ratingraph.com/tv-shows/stuck-in-the-middle-ratings-55686/). The setting is a middle-class family in suburban Massachusetts[12](https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/download/4840/1669).
Her siblings are Rachel (Ronni Hawk), the self-involved oldest sister; Ethan (Isaak Presley), Harley's closest ally; Georgie (Kayla Maisonet), a basketball player; the twins Lewie (Nicolas Bechtel) and "Beast" ([Malachi Barton](https://www.edgepedia.org/malachi-barton)); and the strong-willed youngest, Daphne ([Ariana Greenblatt](https://www.edgepedia.org/ariana-greenblatt)). The parents are Tom (Joe Nieves) and Suzy ([Cerina Vincent](https://www.edgepedia.org/cerina-vincent))[2](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle) • [13](https://www.tvinsider.com/show/stuck-in-the-middle/).
## Production and format
Disney Channel ordered the series in 2015 as a Latino family sitcom toplined by Ortega, with production beginning that November and a spring 2016 debut planned[5](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/disney-channel-orders-latino-family-sitcom-toplined-jane-170031671.html). The pilot was co-written by Figueiredo and Brown, with a story by Brown[5](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/disney-channel-orders-latino-family-sitcom-toplined-jane-170031671.html).
Unlike most Disney Channel sitcoms of its era, *Stuck in the Middle* was a single-camera production without a live audience or laugh track, and Harley frequently spoke directly to the camera[6](https://cdnvideo.dolimg.com/cdn_assets/9f6fcdbeb1e53f4c21bc79da3395986880516fc6.pdf). A six-episode series of web shorts, *Stuck in the Store*, aired between the first and second seasons[14](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/Stuck_in_the_Middle).
## Broadcast run
The show premiered on February 14, 2016[1](https://d23.com/a-to-z/stuck-in-the-middle-television/). Season two launched with a television movie in early 2017, and a third season was ordered that August[15](https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/tag/stuck-in-the-middle-canceled-or-renewed/). On March 30, 2018, Disney Channel announced that the third season would be the last; the 22-episode season began airing that summer[8](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/stuck-middle-end-3-seasons-213256516.html) • [16](https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/stuck-middle-disney-channel-series-ending-no-season-four/). The finale, "Stuck in Harley's Quinceañera," written by Figueiredo, aired on July 23, 2018 and drew 0.92 million viewers[9](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/Stuck_in_Harley%27s_Quincea%C3%B1era). Around the same time, Ortega was cast in the lead of the ABC comedy pilot *Man of the House*[8](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/stuck-middle-end-3-seasons-213256516.html).
## Reception
Common Sense Media rated the show suitable for ages 6 and up, describing it as a heartwarming comedy about chaotic family life with recurring themes of family ties, compassion, and gratitude, and noting the absence of violence, sexual content, and strong language[2](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle). On IMDb the series holds a 6.4/10 rating from about 4,300 votes[17](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4488724/). Rotten Tomatoes lists no critic reviews for the series, so its Tomatometer shows no score[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/stuck_in_the_middle).
Viewer commentary has often compared the show to *Malcolm in the Middle*, which pioneered the direct-to-camera narration format it uses, and to Nickelodeon's animated *The Loud House*, another large-family series that premiered the same year[18](https://animesuperhero.com/forums/threads/is-disney-channels-stuck-in-the-middle-a-rip-off-from-the-loud-house.5575391/). A 2016 review in LaughingPlace.com suggested the show could be Disney Channel's next *Lizzie McGuire* and called it a cut above other Disney Channel shows of the time[19](https://www.laughingplace.com/w/featured/2016/03/11/tv-review-stuck-middle-disney-channels-next-lizzie-mcguire/).
## Representation of Latinidad
Scholars have examined the series as a case of mainstream representation of Latino families. Diana Leon-Boys and Angharad N. Valdivia, communication scholars at the [University of South Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-south-florida) and the University of Illinois, analyzed Disney's production of what they call specific and ambiguous Latinidad in the series, examining the family, the character Harley Diaz, and four selected episodes; they describe a tension between a mainstream producer's claim to represent Latinidad and ethnic audiences' demands for visibility, resulting in a conflict between identifiable presence and stereotypical depiction[20](https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/spe_facpub/956/). Related commentary notes that the series draws on familiar Latinx tropes, including quinceañeras, while also presenting the STEM-savvy tween as an emerging secondary trope in Disney Channel's Latinx universe[21](https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/items/115701/bitstreams/378451/data.pdf). Kid reviewers on Common Sense Media were divided in a similar way: many found the portrayal of a large Latino family relatable, while others criticized the characters' behavior and messages[2](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle).
## Legacy
The series is now remembered largely through Ortega's later career. In the pilot, Harley remarks that if her family were a week, she would be Wednesday, the forgotten middle of the week; Disney Channel resurfaced the line when Ortega was cast as [Wednesday Addams](https://www.edgepedia.org/wednesday-addams) in Netflix's *Wednesday* in 2022[4](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/young-jenna-ortega-outed-herself-great-candidate-for-wednesday-addams-still-in-disney-years). The show retains a streaming home on Disney+, where all three seasons are available in the United States and dozens of other countries[10](https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-ac3a2eb3-c7b4-4780-a1f0-06570d0f117e).
## References
1. [Stuck in the Middle (television), D23](https://d23.com/a-to-z/stuck-in-the-middle-television/)
2. [Parents' Guide to Stuck in the Middle, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/stuck-in-the-middle)
3. [Stuck in the Middle, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/stuck_in_the_middle)
4. [That Time A Young Jenna Ortega Outed Herself As A Great Candidate For Wednesday Addams, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/young-jenna-ortega-outed-herself-great-candidate-for-wednesday-addams-still-in-disney-years)
5. [Disney Channel Orders Latino Family Sitcom Toplined by 'Jane the Virgin' Star, Variety via Yahoo](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/disney-channel-orders-latino-family-sitcom-toplined-jane-170031671.html)
6. [Disney Channel rate card, series synopsis](https://cdnvideo.dolimg.com/cdn_assets/9f6fcdbeb1e53f4c21bc79da3395986880516fc6.pdf)
7. [List of Stuck in the Middle episodes, Disney Channel Wiki](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_Stuck_in_the_Middle_episodes)
8. ['Stuck In the Middle' To End After 3 Seasons On Disney Channel, Deadline via Yahoo](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/stuck-middle-end-3-seasons-213256516.html)
9. [Stuck in Harley's Quinceañera, Disney Channel Wiki](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/Stuck_in_Harley%27s_Quincea%C3%B1era)
10. [Stuck In The Middle, Disney+](https://www.disneyplus.com/browse/entity-ac3a2eb3-c7b4-4780-a1f0-06570d0f117e)
11. [Stuck in the Middle ratings, Rating Graph](https://www.ratingraph.com/tv-shows/stuck-in-the-middle-ratings-55686/)
12. [Starlets, Subscribers, and Beneficiaries, International Journal of Communication](https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/download/4840/1669)
13. [Stuck in the Middle, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/show/stuck-in-the-middle/)
14. [Stuck in the Middle, Disney Channel Wiki](https://disneychannel.fandom.com/wiki/Stuck_in_the_Middle)
15. [Stuck in the Middle: canceled or renewed?, TV Series Finale](https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/tag/stuck-in-the-middle-canceled-or-renewed/)
16. [Stuck in the Middle: Disney Channel Series Ending; No Season Four, TV Series Finale](https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/stuck-middle-disney-channel-series-ending-no-season-four/)
17. [Stuck in the Middle (2016–2018), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4488724/)
18. [Is Disney Channel's Stuck In The Middle a rip-off from The Loud House?, Anime Superhero Forum](https://animesuperhero.com/forums/threads/is-disney-channels-stuck-in-the-middle-a-rip-off-from-the-loud-house.5575391/)
19. [TV Review: Stuck in the Middle Could Be Disney Channel's Next Lizzie McGuire, LaughingPlace.com](https://www.laughingplace.com/w/featured/2016/03/11/tv-review-stuck-middle-disney-channels-next-lizzie-mcguire/)
20. [The Location of US Latinidad: Stuck in the Middle, Disney, and the in between Ethnicity, Leon-Boys & Valdivia, Journal of Children and Media](https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/spe_facpub/956/)
21. [Dissertation on Disney Channel's Latinx universe, University of Illinois](https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/items/115701/bitstreams/378451/data.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Sitcom and comedy series › Family and household sitcoms › Contemporary family sitcoms*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license