After 10 seasons on ABC, the future of the hit series Modern Family could be in question as the six adult leads continue their contract negotiations.
Modern Family stars Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ed O’Neill, Eric Stonestreet, and Sofia Vergara are in talks with producer 20th Century Fox TV to continue their roles in 2019-20, putting the show at its 11th season, the Hollywood Reporter confirmed.
Modern Family co-creator Steven Levitan had previously to the Hollywood Reporter that “the plan was to end it at 10” seasons.
The entertainment news outlet then noted that the end of the show was planned before 20th Century Fox TV was poised to become part of Disney, which owns ABC.
This merger would be a win for everyone involved as acquiring 20th Century Fox TV would lend itself to benefits for Disney, ABC, and likely the show’s stars, who would continue to make a hefty sum through syndication and streaming.
Apparently, the six adult leads have already worked out the financial terms of their new deals, reported THR.
At the end of the show’s eighth season, the cast was making roughly $350,000 per episode as well as a portion of the show’s profits. The stars later landed significant raises, reported THR .
The contracts for the younger stars of Modern Family – Sarah Hyland, Ariel Winter, Rico Rodriguez, and Nolan Gould – will reportedly be worked out after the six adults finish their negotiations, alleges the outlet.
The series celebrated its 200th episode on January 10, 2018, and it could be one of the last comedies to ever reach that milestone, as many of today’s newest comedies are being aired on streaming services such as Amazon and Netflix.
“I often joke to castmembers as we introduce our 198th episode that if we were on Netflix, we would be in our 25th season and Manny would be in his early 40s by this point,” co-creator Christopher Lloyd told the Hollywood Reporter.
“I think it’s a point of pride for us that we can still do quality work in a 24-episode season. In fact, I think there’s been a little bit of maybe a rush to reject network television in favor of the Netflix and Amazon series and cable series, as though network stuff is nothing but commercial. I think we still do put out a good product and we challenge ourselves to keep the quality of the show up.”
Modern Family airs on ABC.