‘Modern Family’s Ariel Winter Opens up About ‘Rotten’ Experience as Child Actor

Modern Family alum Ariel Winter is opening up about her “rotten” experience as a child actor. The actress, who is currently going head-to-head with a group of celebrities on Fox’s Stars on Mars, spoke to her co-stars Tinashe and Ronda Rousey about growing up in the industry. According to the Daily Mail, Winter admitted that her “experience was rotten” but said that it wasn’t “inevitable” as “it depends on the parent. It depends on your parent.”

Winter started acting when she was just four years old in 2002 and started booking roles in 2005 before ultimately nabbing the role of Alex Dunphy on ABC’s popular sitcom . Unfortunately, things only went downhill from there. In 2012, her older sister Shanelle accused their mother, Chrisoula, of abuse, both physical and emotional, towards the actress when she was only 14. 20-year-old Shanelle asked for guardianship of her little sister, and while their mother denied any and all abuse allegations, Shanelle was able to become her sister’s legal guardian. An agreement was reached, and Shanelle and Chrisoula jointly said that “The family has moved beyond the conflict.”

Only a year later, Winter was officially emancipated, and Tinashe praised her for her strength and how she’s handled herself, saying, “I’m really impressed with Ariel. You really have to be a strong personality and a strong woman and have a really strong sense of self to be operating in the entertainment industry. I relate to that.”

Winter has definitely gone through a lot while in the industry, between family drama and trolls. But, with her second family, her Modern Family, as well as other fellow actors, it seems like she has a pretty good support system, even if it’s not her actual family. Growing up in the industry is tough, especially starting out at such a young age. However, Winter seems to be in a pretty good place now, which is remarkable for all that she’s been through.

You can see Winter battle it out to become the last standing “Celebronaut” on Fox’s Stars on Mars on Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on the network. It’s going to be entertaining to see how long the will last and what else could possibly go down as she and other celebrities fight to be the brightest star in the galaxy.