Jesse Tyler Ferguson: Playing a Gay Parent on Modern Family Was a Lot of Pressure

The Great Creators with Guy Raz

Jesse Tyler Ferguson played one of the most important TV characters of the past 25 years. The role of Mitchell Pritchett – the openly gay lawyer and father on Modern Family – brought Jesse fame; praise; a deep sense of meaning; and as you'll hear in this episode, some criticism, too.

In this wide-ranging conversation, Jesse talks about trusting his intuition and going all-in on acting despite financial struggles; the powerful influence of a mentor early in his career; stereotypes and the perils of representing an entire group of people on TV; his one-man show on Broadway; and where he's taking his career next.

Jesse's podcast is called Dinner's On Me.

Links:

• Modern Family "Lion King" scene
• Trailer for Jesse's one-man Broadway show, Fully Committed
• Jesse's podcast, Dinner's On Me
• Jesse's Instagram

See all our episodes – including conversations with Tom Hanks, Jason Sudeikis, Bjork, and many more – at TheGreatCreators.com.

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