Modern Family star Julie Bowen teases reboot and the real story behind Sofia Vergara ‘feud’
Julie Bowen, one of the stars of Modern Family, reveals whether the mega-hit US sitcom will be rebooted, as she sets the record straight about her ‘feud’ with former co-star, Sofia Vergara.
Stellar
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The star of mega-hit sitcom Modern Family has largely kept her own life out of the Hollywood spotlight. Here, the 54-year-old opens up about motherhood, not being an “attention hog” and what she really thinks about former co-star Sofia Vergara.
Stellar: Despite appearing on hugely popular series Modern Family, you’ve managed to keep your private life mostly private (Bowen shares sons Oliver, 15, and twins Gus and John, 13, with her ex-husband Scott Phillips). Has that been a conscious choice?
Julie Bowen: When Modern Family started, I had just given birth to my twins, and I had a two-year-old, so it was more a matter of I didn’t have time to go out. And since I’ve been divorced [she and Phillips ended their 13-year marriage in 2018], I always think about what my kids would read, because they see everything. So, it’s not so much that I keep it private for me, but I want to keep my life private for them. I don’t want them to read about me dating or see me doing something. They deserve to have a childhood that isn’t invaded by or overshadowed by their mum being a big, fat attention hog.
Stellar: The idea of the “sitcom mum” has evolved from its 1950s incarnations. Did those stereotypes make you hesitant to play Claire Dunphy in that show?
Julie Bowen: I was not. When I read the pilot, I couldn’t believe how much fun it was. I wanted that job so badly. I didn’t even care if, going forward, she stands by the refrigerator and shakes her [finger at the kids], which is the way I think of TV mums in the past, because I thought the writing was fantastic … They gave her story and a heart and challenges and weird stuff to do, so I was overjoyed.
Stellar: Modern Family ended in 2020 after 11 seasons. Will there ever be a reboot?
Julie Bowen: I’m in. Can you round up everybody else? You can be a producer and be on set every day. You’d have so much fun.
There were rumours of a rivalry between you and co-star Sofia Vergara, who played Claire’s younger stepmum, Gloria Delgado-Pritchett. Have we reached a stage where society isn’t looking to pit women against each other?
A lot of times, people will be like, “Why did you not get along?” And I’m like, “Are you kidding? I love Sofia, and as far as I know, she loves me.” I was texting with her this morning. It’s ridiculous that when two or more women are gathered, there’s some sort of scarcity mindset that comes up from the women themselves about competing for resources, [those] being, I guess, men. There’s also this idea that when women get together, from the male perspective, they’re like witches … “They’ll become too powerful … What if they find out that they don’t need us?” Either way, I call BS. I love women. I love all different kinds, shapes, sizes, and a woman like Sofia, who’s so comfortable in her skin, is so who she is and has such a great sense of humour. I bow down. I love her.
Listen to the latest episode of the Stellar podcast, Something To Talk About, here:
Have you been offered a lot of similar roles to Modern Family, and did you go out of your way to do something different with your new series, Hysteria!, a horror series based on the “satanic panic” that swept across the US in the 1980s?
I do get offered a lot of TV mum roles, which is a blessing, and thank you to anybody that wants to employ me. I always consider it an honour. I don’t think people would want to see me be a completely different human being. Over the course of Hysteria!, we really subvert the idea of, “Oh, this is a mum, we’ve seen her before.” But by the end of the pilot, we’ve warned you we’re taking you on a totally different ride.
Which TV mum are you most like in real life?
Bonnie Franklin from One Day At A Time [who played Ann Romano, a divorced mother raising two teenage daughters, in the 1975 to 1984 US sitcom]. She was this sassy little boss, and she reminded me so much of my mum, watching it at the time. No-one has ever asked me that question, and Bonnie is the first one that comes to mind because she was a sassy single mum.
Hysteria! is set in the 1980s, an era known for its shocking style. You were only a child at the time, but did you commit any crimes against hair or clothing during that period?
I didn’t commit the hair crime. I’ve always had the same boring hair. It gets short or long, but it’s still just my hair. I’ve never done crazy high hair, like “the claw” as they called it in the ’80s. So it was a bit of wish fulfilment, to get to do that for this show; I get to have that ’80s hair, which was kind of fun. But fashion crimes? Shoulder pads. Big, big shoulder pads – the bigger the better. You didn’t even notice [how big they were] until later on. I’ll go back to my parents’ house in Baltimore and find some old jacket of mine put on and go, “What’s happening?” because it doesn’t even move when you move in it.
Listen to the latest episode of the Stellar podcast, Something To Talk About, here:
You’re currently filming a sequel to the hit 1996 golf comedy Happy Gilmore with its co-writer and star, Adam Sandler. What has it been like shooting and playing his love interest again, 28 years after the first movie?
Oh boy, people love Adam because he can be filthy, dirty and raunchy, but somehow, he always has so much heart so he gets away with everything. So no, Happy hasn’t changed a lot. He’s still not always happy, or else he would be boring. I do think that comedy [as a genre] has become less targeted and hurtful. I don’t put that on Adam. I’m just saying that gender slurs or [jokes about] sexual orientations you simply wouldn’t make anymore. You would cringe at things that were perfectly accepted 20 years ago. And thank God. I hope I’m not on screen doing any of those things, but I may be. You know, it was a different time, and I hope all of us have grown and evolved since then.
Hysteria! premieres on Binge on Friday and is also available on Hubbl. For more from Stellar and the podcast, Something To Talk About, click here.
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