'Modern Family' Star Ty Burrell Faces Tough Career Setback

The 'Modern Family' star was set to return to ABC to executive produce and star in the new series 'Forgive & Forget.'

By Allison Schonter

Modern Family alum Ty Burrell will not be returning to ABC anytime soon. The network has opted not to move forward with its multi-camera comedy pilot, Forgive & Forget. The series, starring and executive produced by Burrell, was originally ordered to pilot at ABC back in March, with TVLine reporting Monday that the network has passed on the comedy pilot.

Set to be Burrell's big return to ABC more than four years after his exit as Phil Dunphy when Modern Family concluded in 2020, Forgive & Forget was going to star the actor as Hank, a "perennial life of the party" who, following an unexpected diagnosis, "reconnects with his responsible adult son Ben in hopes of making new memories together."

Eugene Garcia-Cross was the writer and executive producer of the pilot with Robin Shorr showrunning and executive producing. Burrell was also attached as executive produced under his Desert Whale Productions banner. 20th Television was the studio.

The series was first buzzed about in January 2023, with the pilot being ordered in March. Further news regarding the show, including casting, had not been announced in the months since.

Deadline reports that while "the pilot came in OK and had internal support," Forgive & Forget faced challenges early on, and ABC's bar for comedies is now "very high." Complicating matters is the subject matter of the show, as it deals with Alzheimer's, which "might have felt a little darker for broadcast TV."

While Forgive & Forget has been axed, it's not all bad news for Burrell. Disney is reportedly "committed to getting a series with Burrell going, and I hear talks are underway for other opportunities." Details of those opportunities remain unclear.

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Burrell, of course, is best known for his portrayal of Phil Dunphy on Modern Family. The hit sitcom, created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, followed the lives of three diverse family set-ups, interrelated through their patriarch, Jay Pritchett, living in suburban Los Angeles. Along with Burrell, the show also starred Ed O'Neill, Sofía Vergara, Julie Bowen, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, Sarah Hyland, Ariel Winters, Nolan Gould, Rico Rodriguez, Aubrey Anderson-Emmons, Jeremy Maguire, and Reid Ewing.

Burrell starred on the sitcom for 11 seasons and 250 episodes, earning eight consecutive Emmy nominations and two wins in the supporting comedy actor category in 2011 and 2014. He also received a SAG award for best comedy actor in 2014. Following his time on Modern Family, he went on to join the voice cast of Fox's animated series Duncanville in the role of Jack Harris opposite Amy Poehler.

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