Before the Dunphys, the Pritchetts and the Tucker-Pritchetts came together on screen, one actor had already locked in his spot. Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who played Mitchell Pritchett, was the very first person cast on Modern Family.
Building Around Mitchell
Ferguson’s Mitchell, the anxious, sharp-tongued lawyer and son of Jay Pritchett, became one half of the show’s most iconic couple alongside Eric Stonestreet’s Cameron Tucker. Their dynamic, with Mitchell’s uptight practicality clashing with Cam’s flair for drama, gave the series some of its biggest laughs and much of its heart.
An Emmy-Winning Ensemble
From that first casting decision, the show went on to assemble one of television’s most celebrated ensembles. Ferguson earned five straight Emmy nominations for the role, while the series itself won Outstanding Comedy Series five years in a row.
Mitchell and Cam’s storyline was also groundbreaking for network TV, from raising their daughter Lily to finally getting married in Season 5 after same-sex marriage became legal in California.
It’s a fun piece of trivia that the actor who kicked off the casting process ended up at the centre of so many of the show’s most memorable moments. It turns out the Modern Family family started with Mitchell.