There have been hundreds of sitcoms over the years, but only a select few have managed to redefine the genre. Modern Family wasn’t just another family comedy, it was a revolutionary mockumentary-style sitcom that breathed new life into an old format. The brainchild of Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, the show blended relatability with innovation in a way few others dared to try.
In an old interview, co-creator Christopher Lloyd explained how the series came to life and how the duo consciously set out to build something truly modern. From breaking away from sitcom cliches to giving the show a unique visual identity, the creative process behind Modern Family was nothing short of brilliant.
Modern Family is a show like no other
Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan had one clear goal when they sat down to create Modern Family: they didn’t want to make a cookie-cutter sitcom. Lloyd admitted that there had already been countless shows about family dynamics, so if they were going to do one, it had to stand out. That’s where the mockumentary format came in, and it was something rarely used for sitcoms at the time.
The decision to let characters break the fourth wall and speak directly to the audience gave it a unique feel. Lloyd described it as giving a more voyeuristic touch to the audience
We thought, maybe this…documentary approach is a good start because it enables you to do sort of direct-to-camera interviews, and the whole style of it might just give it a different look that the audience might feel like they’re observing something that they’re not necessarily supposed to be observing. A little bit, more of a voyeuristic kind of experience.
A legend like Ed O’Neill thrived in the new setup, and so did the other cast members like Sofia Vergara (like a literal face of the show), Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, and more.
The mockumentary setup allowed viewers to feel like a fly on the wall, giving them an inside look at not just what the characters were doing, but how they felt about it. That intimacy became one of the show’s defining strengths.
But just making it stylistically different wasn’t enough; they needed the content to be fresh, too. Lloyd was firm about avoiding the tired trope of a traditional couple where the wife yells at the husband every chance she gets, and there’s a lot of the stereotypical drama.
Instead, they created three distinctly different families: one a classic unit with a working dad, stay-at-home mom, and three kids; another featuring an older man in a second marriage with a much younger woman who has a child from her previous relationship; and a gay couple who have just adopted a Vietnamese baby.
Now, the real struggle, as Lloyd described it, was how to bring those families together. That’s when the makers came up with the idea to tie them together through the patriarch, Jay Pritchett, played by Ed O’Neill, the older man in the second marriage, who is the father of Claire, played by Julie Bowen, (from the traditional family) and Mitchell, played by Jesse Tyler Ferguson, (from the gay couple).
That connection allowed the show to feel cohesive, while each family still maintained its own space and storylines.
Revealing their identities and finalizing the network for Modern Family
Lloyd said that after figuring out the plot, they worked on the timing of when the public is made aware of their connection. That became one of the most memorable moments of the pilot and set the tone for the show that went on to become one of the most successful sitcoms of all time, and created a solid fan base.
And despite the complexity of the concept, writing the pilot only took them about two to three weeks. However, the full process, refining the idea, structuring the relationships, and locking down the tone, took closer to two months. Once the script was polished, they pitched it to the major networks: CBS, NBC, and ABC.
Interestingly, Lloyd revealed that they had no interest in taking the show to Fox, citing experiences with the network in the past. The response from the other three networks was overwhelmingly positive. In the end, they went with ABC, a decision that ultimately paid off as Modern Family became one of the most beloved sitcoms of its generation.
From the innovative format to the layered family structures, the makers cracked the sitcom code in a way that felt both fresh and familiar, and forever changed the TV landscape.
Modern Family is now streaming on Hulu (USA).
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