NEWS'Modern Family' Alum Ty Burrell Pokes Fun at 2023 Death Hoax: 'Remember When I Died?'
'Modern Family' star Ty Burrell playfully recalled the death hoax he had in 2023 after he missed a reunion with his costars.
April 5 2025, Published 11:00 a.m. ET
Ty Burrell is setting the record straight amid bizarre rumors swirling about his absence during the 2023 Modern Family reunion. The actor joined his costar Jesse Tyler Ferguson on the podcast "Dinner’s On Me" to discuss the hilariously tragic death hoax that had fans confused.
"We had that one big reunion,” Ferguson, 49, recounted, as Burrell, 57, humorously interjected, "That I couldn’t make it to."
Ty Burrell playfully recalled the time people thought he was dead after he missed a 'Modern Family' reunion.
"Well, I died,” Burrell quipped, to which Ferguson added, "Famously you died."
"Remember how I died? Do you remember when I died?" Burrell probed playfully.
"The internet had decided that you had died," Ferguson said, chuckling.
Sofía Vergara and the rest of the cast of 'Modern Family' posed for pictures without Ty Burrell, who played the lovable Phil Dunphy.
Their banter refers to the November 2023 cast reunion, where the ensemble gathered and posed for pictures on Sofía Vergara’s Instagram without the beloved Phil Dunphy.
In an endearing homage, the cast held up a photo of Ty in his absence, and Vergara even showcased a video featuring Burrell’s picture prominently displayed above the fireplace.
Fans panicked when they saw a framed photo of Ty Burrell in place of the actor.
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Yet, many followers were left scratching their heads in the comments, with some even fearing the worst. "I had to check Google to make sure he didn’t die," one distressed user commented.
Another added, "THIS MADE ME THINK HE WAS DEAD I PANICKED."
As it turns out, Ferguson revealed that despite the reunion plans, Burrell completely forgot he had surgery scheduled for that very same day.
Ty Burrell had a surgery scheduled on the day his 'Modern Family' costars met in 2023.
"After that whole thing, everybody in the cast was telling me that, you know, apparently I passed,” Burrell reflected during the podcast. “But the only photos I had of me missing were me in the hospital from surgery.”
The laughter continued as Ferguson shared details of the reunion, explaining how they had all made sacrifices to come together.
"Honestly, on that night, we were all busy… and we figured out a way to come together because the last time we had a reunion, Ty Burrell wasn’t able to come, and so we posed with a photo of Ty … and then the internet thought he was dead," Ferguson stated.
Modern Family concluded its impressive run in April 2020, after 11 memorable seasons, with Burrell bringing to life the lovable Phil Dunphy throughout.
Reflecting on the show’s impact, he told Parade back in 2020, “There’s an inclusive quality. It brings people together. When we started, people actually watched it on Wednesday nights with their family — and that, hopefully, contributed to stronger families. That makes me really proud.”
After being prodded about his parenting style, Burrell shared some personal insights. “There are a lot of things that, for obvious reasons, I share with Phil in terms of my demeanor. I am also a hopeless optimist, which I share with Phil,” he said.
He added: “But weirdly, the parenting that I have related to most has been the Mitch and Cam [Eric Stonestreet] storyline, because their daughter, Lily [Aubrey Anderson–Emmons], was the age of my kids, and I’m an adoptive parent [to daughters Frances and Greta]. So those parallels were the things that I was drawn to the most. Watching the show as a normal viewer, I got the most laughs over the last 11 years from their storyline because I was going through all of that.”
