‘Modern Family’ Star Sarah Hyland Dishes on Final Season Death

Someone on Modern Family is going to die during the show’s 10th season, and it better not be the dog or Sarah Hyland is leaving the show.

During a red carpet interview with Variety Saturday night, Hyland was asked if she knows who is going to die. After a very long pause, Hyland said she had no idea.

“I hope it’s not the dog,” she said.

When reminded that some are speculating that Stella the dog is going to die, Hyland was dismissive.

“Fans of the show, if the dog dies, I leave,” Hyland said. She would rather see “anyone” die before Stella.

“I’m that person who watches Walking Dead… like, feed the zombie the baby before the dog! I’m a horrible person, I know, but I just love animals so much. I love animals!” Hyland added.

Hyland said she was not aware of someone being killed off before she heard the news, and if she was told, she might have tuned it out. She did admit to being a “little scared” about her character, Haley, dying because she is “very accident prone.”

After Hyland heard the news, she took to Twitter, writing, “Is this how actors on Game of Thrones & The Walking Dead feel?!?!”

Back on Thursday, Modern Family co-creator Christopher Lloyd told Entertainment Weekly that a “significant” character will die during Modern Family‘s 10th season.

“We’re handling some bigger life events in this season. We do deal with a death, which is certainly a topic that families have to deal with, and on television, it’s not easy to do because that’s a heavy subject. But at the same time, it would seem unusual for a family not to go through it,” Lloyd explained.

Lloyd refused to give details on which member of the family will die, but said the death “will be a moving event — and an event that has repercussions across several episodes.”

The new season will also see the end of the actors’ current contracts, leading some to suspect the 10th season will be its last. However, Lloyd is hopeful that the Pritchett family will be back for another season.

“There’s goodwill on both sides to make it happen, but there’s also complicated matters that have to get worked through, and there’s a time constraint on it, because we can’t have it take too long,” Lloyd said. “I’m hoping that that doesn’t make the whole thing go away, but I think there’s a decent chance we’ll see it happen. I hope there is.

Lloyd also teased other “significant” changes in the show’s family dynamics, including some the family did not expect to come so soon.

Aside from Hyland, Modern Family also stars Ed O’Neill, Sofia Vergara, Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ariel Winter, Eric Stonestreet, Nolan Gould and Rico Rodriguez.

Modern Family season 10 begins at 9 p.m. ET on Sept. 26 on ABC.

Photo credit: ABC/Robert Ashcroft