They Haven't Acted Since Modern Family Ended. Here's Why - Looper (2024)

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ByMegan Behnke/July 16, 2021 2:23 pm EST

When "Modern Family" premiered on ABC in 2009, no one could have predicted the success that would come with it. The series quickly became a critical hit after its debut, and is credited with the revival of sitcoms, even winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. Throughout the 11-season run, "Modern Family" remained a top series and even today has stayed popular thanks to streaming. With 250 episodes defined by a diverse cast and relatable storylines, "Modern Family" has gone down as one of the best comedies on television, right next to shows like "Friends," "The Office,""The Big Bang Theory," and "Parks and Recreation."

Despite the spotlight on much of the "Modern Family" cast, there are some who haven't acted since their time on the ABC sitcom. Of course, the series' end in 2020 coincided with industry-wide shutdowns that kept its leads out of work, but some of the stars on this list were only on the show for a short time and haven't had an on-screen acting job in years. Here's why.

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Best known for his role as Al Bundy on "Married... with Children," Ed O'Neill portrays "Modern Family" patriarch Jay Pritchett. O'Neill has also been seen in "L.A. Dragnet," "The West Wing," and "John from Cincinnati," but his role as Jay Pritchett brought particular accolades, earning him three Primetime Emmy Awards nominations and four Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Jay is the owner of a closet company and the wealthiest family member. His relationship with his kids, particularly Mitchell, is complicated, but Jay's affection for his extended family members usually overtakes that. Throughout the series he at times goes overboard, especially when it comes to his dog Stella, his favorite member of the family. He also served in the Navy during the Vietnam War.

Ed O'Neill's most recent acting credit besides "Modern Family" was in the 2020 film "The Night Shift." Currently the comedian has no upcoming projects listed on his IMDb — surprising, given his extensive filmography. It's possible the actor simply wants to take a break, seeing how many roles he's played over the years.

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Sofia Vergara is most known for her role as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in "Modern Family." However, she can also be seen on "Entourage" and "Hot Pursuit," and has done voice work for "The Emoji Movie," "The Cleveland Show," "Family Guy," and "The Simpsons."

As Jay's second wife and mother to Manny and Joe, Gloria Delgado-Pritchett is a loving wife and mother. While the age difference between Gloria and Jay might raise eyebrows, she is supportive of her kids (if a little oblivious when it comes to certain things, like driving). Throughout the series, Gloria is seen as caring and is willing to do anything for her family.

Vergara's last on-screen acting role besides the ABC sitcom was in the 2019 film "Bottom of the 9th." She's been a judge on "America's Got Talent" since Season 15, so it's possible that her being on the show has kept her from doing other acting jobs. She is set to lend her voice to the upcoming animated film "Koati," alongside husband Joe Manganiello.

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Jesse Tyler Ferguson is best known as his role as Richie Velch on "The Class" and Mitchell Pritchett on "Modern Family." However, he has also been seen on other TV series, including "Do Not Disturb," "Ugly Betty," and "Web Therapy." His big-screen work includes "Untraceable," "Wonderful World," and a voice role in "Ice Age: Collision Course."

Low-key and mild-mannered with sensitive qualities, Mitchell Pritchett is Jay's son. He and Cameron got married in the fifth season finale, though throughout the season, Mitchell's relationship with his father is strained because of Jay's struggles coming to terms with his son's sexuality.

Besides appearing as himself on shows like "Running Wild with Bear Grylls" and "Nightcap and Drop the Mic," Jesse Tyler Ferguson's last on-screen acting credit was as Wes in an episode of "Hot in Cleveland." He can currently be seen hosting the new "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which could be why he hasn't taken many acting projects since "Modern Family" ended.Ferguson does, however, have a role in Elizabeth Banks' upcoming film "Cocaine Bear."

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Comedian Eric Stonestreet is best known for his role as Cameron Tucker on"Modern Family." He also had a recurring role as Ronnie Litre on "CSI" and has appeared across multiple shows, including "ER," "Providence,""Bones,"and even "American HorrorStory:Murder House."He also voices Duke in "The Secret Life of Pets."

Cameron Tucker is Mitchell's husband and has a dramatic personality. While he started out as a stay-at-home father to be with Lily, he later becomes a football coach. Even though he and Mitchell disagree on some parenting styles, they both love each other, even getting featured in a story on the local news in the sixth season profiling their lives as gay parents.

Even though Stonestreet hasn't shied away from television and movies since "Modern Family" started, most recent on-screen acting credit besides the ABC sitcom was the TV movie "Confirmation" in 2016. In 2020, Stonestreet appeared as a guest judge on "America's Got Talent" and a contestant on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." Currently, he currently has no upcoming acting roles listed on his filmography. It's possible that he wants to take a break, having played the same character for 11 years, or maybe we'll start seeing him more as Hollywood gets back to work post-pandemic.

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Ariel Winter is known as the voice of the titular character on Disney Junior's "Sofia the First," as well as Penny Peterson in the animated film "Mr. Peabody and Sherman." However, she's best known as the middle Dunphy child, Alex, on "Modern Family."

At the beginning of the series, Alex Dunphy is the 13-year-old daughter of Claire and Phil, who is the most intelligent of the three Dunphy kids. In Season 6, Alex is accepted into Caltech and maintains her genius status. At the end of the series, she ends up quitting her job and moving back home, but she soon decides to relocate to Switzerland with new co-worker Arvin for work.

With an emotional end to Alex's story, "Modern Family" has marked the last on-screen role for Ariel Winter to date. The actress played three voice roles that premiered in 2020 after the series ended: the titular character in the direct-to-video animated film "Little Audrey," returning to voice Sofia on the Disney Junior show "Elena of Avalor," and reprising Young Kairi in the video game "Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory."

It's possible that because of the pandemic, she's wanted to focus on voiceover work. Of course, not having any current on-screen acting jobs doesn't mean she's done performing — she does have as-yet undisclosed roles in three upcoming projects: "Pools," "Don't Log Off" and "Crimelands," according to IMDb.

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Even though Nolan Gould is most known for his role on "Modern Family," he's previously appeared in movies such as"Space Buddies" and "Friends with Benefits," and on TV shows like "Good Luck Charlie," "R.L. Stine's The Haunting Hour," and even "Sofia the First" alongside his on-screen sister, Ariel Winter.

Nolan Gould portrays the youngest Dunphy child, troublemaker Luke. Even though Luke is considered to be not so bright throughout the series, his story eventually ends with him being accepted to the University of Oregon, and finally moving out of his parents' home.

The actor's last on-screen role outside of "Modern Family" was in the 2019 film "Yes." While he hasn't done much since the end of the popular sitcom, he'll be seen in the upcoming coming-of-age dramedy "Camp." According to IMDb, it's completed production, but has yet to receive a release date.

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Rico Rodriguez played an ice cream kid prankster on "Jimmy Kimmel Live," and appeared in other shows such as "Cory in the House," "ER," and "Nip/Tuck" before taking on his memorable role as Manny Delgado in "Modern Family." He also appeared alongside his sister, Raini Rodriguez, in an episode ofDisney Channel's "Austin & Ally."

Manny is Gloria's son from her first marriage to Javier. Street smart and mature, Manny engaged in the stock market business and briefly considered following in his biological father's footsteps by becoming a professional gambler. In the end, Manny leaves to travel the world and create his own legacy, though the character wound up annoying a lot of fans in last stretch of the series.

Rico Rodriguez hasn't acted since "Modern Family" ended, though he has appeared as himself on the Nickelodeon series "The Substitute"and "Unfiltered." According to his IMDb, he currently doesn't have any upcoming projects in the works.

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Aubrey Anderson-Emmons' very first role was as Lily Tucker-Pritchett on "Modern Family,"replacing Ella and Jaden Hiller in the third season. She's also appeared as herself in an episode of "Bill Nye Saves the World" and Nickelodeon's "Paradise Run."

The adoptive daughter of Cameron and Mitchell, young Lily didn't speak for the first two seasons, until Aubrey Anderson-Emmons took over the role. Throughout the series as Lily starts to talk more, she turns out to be sarcastic and dramatic, thanks to her dads.

Currently, the 14-year-old actress doesn't have any other projects lined up. However, her family does charity work for organizations including St. Jude Children's Hospital, California Covenant House Youth Shelter, and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. She has a YouTube channel, FoodMania Review, that she started with her mom in 2015. The YouTube channel has just over 35,000 subscribers, so whether or not Aubrey Anderson-Emmons returns to acting, she'll still be found on some screens.

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Reid Ewing is known in his recurring roles on "Zeke and Luther" and "Good Luck Charlie," but he's most recognizable for his recurring role on "Modern Family" as Dylan Marshall, before finally getting upped to main cast status for the 11th and final season of the ABC sitcom.

Dylan Marshall is Haley Dunphy's on-again, off-again boyfriend and eventual husband, as well as a musician. Throughout the series he has rotating jobs and relationships, but he stays by Haley's side, always going back to her. The two of them finally get married in Season 10 and later have twins, officially starting their new life together.

Reid Ewing's last acting job outside of "Modern Family" was the 2016 film "Temps." For now, Dylan remains is most recent role listed on IMDb. Ewing does play piano, guitar, and banjo, having written and performed a songfor"ModernFamily." It's possible that he's trying to focus on his music career or simply taking a break from being on camera, as in 2015 he revealed he has suffered from body dysmorphic disorder.

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Before Shelley Long was known for her recurring role as DeDe Pritchett on "Modern Family," her most notable role was as Diane Chambers on the classic sitcomCheers– a role she would reprise in three episodes of "Frasier." Long hasalso appearedon "M*A*S*H," "Good Advice," "Murphy Brown," and "Kelly Kelly," as well as lending her voice to the animated series "Milo Murphy's Law."

DeDe is Claire and Mitchell's often manipulative mother. Throughout her time on the series, she's seen as bitter and not always sympathetic towards her family. She would eventually die in her sleep during Season 10.

Despite Shelley Long's lengthy career, her most recent on-screen performances were in 2018, when she appeared in her final episodes of "Modern Family," as well as the film "The Christmas Trap." The actress is set to star as Sharon Enderly in the upcoming film "The Cleaner," which is currently in post-production. It's possible that her new film has kept her from doing other projects, or it was simply the pandemic and lockdown that stopped her from taking on new roles. Whatever the case, it will be nice to see her on the screen once more.

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Benjamin Bratt had an extensive filmography before joining "Modern Family," and he continued taking other projects during his time on the show. The philanthropist has appeared in movies such as "Miss Congeniality" and "Doctor Strange," and lent his voice to the role of Ernesto de la Cruz inPixar's "Coco." His TV work has included "Knightwatch," "Nasty Boys," a main role in three season of "Law & Order," and a recurring part as Dr. Jake Reilly on "Private Practice."

Manny's biological father and Gloria's ex-husband, Javier is not the best person, as he's always letting his son down. Recurring throughout the series, Javier is formerly a Triple-A baseball player, and has had many connections to matadors and baseball players. He becomes close with Jay Pritchett, but lets him down just as he does Manny.

Benjamin Bratt's most recent on-screen credit is "Modern Family," but he is set to star in an upcoming dystopian miniseries for HBO Max, "DMZ." While he is still acting, Bratt has been very active in the American Indian Movement, supporting causes such as the American Indian College Fund. It's possible he's acting less so he can focus on his activism, or he's simply getting ready for his new miniseries.