Key 'Modern Family' Character Will Die in Season 10, Creator Says

Modern Family returns for its 10th season on Sept. 26, and the show's co-creator Christopher Lloyd told Entertainment Weekly that fans can expect a death during the upcoming season of the ABC comedy.

"We're handling some bigger life events in this season," he said. "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 added that the death will claim a "significant character on the series" and "will be a moving event — and an event that has repercussions across several episodes."

Modern Family has retained its core cast of characters throughout its first nine seasons. The show stars Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Sarah Hyland, Sofia Vegara, Ariel Winter, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, Nolan Gould, Ed O'Neill and Rico Rodriguez.

As for what else the family will be facing in Season 10, Lloyd offered, "There is a significant change in the dynamics of the family that people maybe thought was going to happen at some point down the line that is happening sooner than expected."

The show is entering the last season of its contract and has been on the air since 2009. While Lloyd isn't sure what the future of the show will be, he would love to continue its characters' journeys.

"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," he 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."

"From our standpoint creatively we've gotten excited writing this season and changing the lives of the characters — some in a significant way — and it's made us think, 'Wow, there's a lot to explore in the lives of these characters,'" Lloyd continued. "They're in many ways such different characters than they were five or 10 years ago when we started and they're just as interesting and just as funny. So our standpoint was, 'Well, if we can do another season, we may as well. I'm hoping that we have some news on that [soon], and if it winds up that we tried and just couldn't make it work, we will have a great final season for sure."

Modern Family returns on Wednesday, Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.

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