Published on February 6, 2025 07:55PM EST

Alan Cumming is thrilled that younger adults recognize him as Mr. Floop.

In a recent edition of Vanity Fair’s “Scene Selection,” the Traitors host took a look back at some of his most famous roles, including his dastardly Fegan Floop from the Spy Kids movies.

“It’s so changed how people approach me,” he said of the franchise, which kicked off with 2001’s Spy Kids.

“If you were a child in 2001, you’re an adult,” Cumming, 60, explained. “And I remember exactly the moment when young people — young adults — changed their reaction to me when they saw me in public. It went from being like, ‘Oh, famous guy,’ to ‘Mr. Floop! You’re a part of my childhood!’ And it’s continued.”

“I love the idea that I have been a magical part of people’s childhood. It’s such a lovely thing,” he added.

On of those people is, of course, Selena Gomez, who had a small role in 2003’s Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over when she was around 11 years old. Cumming said he’d recently run into Gomez and began to introduce himself before realizing they’d appeared in the film together.

“She was so cute. She goes, ‘I wondered if you’d remember,’ ” Cumming recounted.

Cumming also revealed that he kept Mr. Floop’s sofa from the set of the first movie. “It’s in my house in the Catskills, a funny purple sofa and it has a curly bit,” he said. “And whenever I see clips of Spy Kids I’m always looking for my sofa in the background.”

The Emmy and Tony Award winner also noted parallels between his Spy Kids character and himself.

“The truth of Floop is that he really just wants to, you know, have a nice time and make lovely art and do his TV show and have fun — a bit like me in my life actually,” Cumming said. “I just want to have fun and do fun things. But he kind of gets — also a bit like me — sometimes his fun and his charm gets used in more mercenary ways.”