Ariel Winter is best known for playing Alex Dunphy in Modern Family, but she started her acting career when she was just four years old and has opened up on her experiences with ‘male predators’
Ariel Winter has spoken out about the “inappropriate messages from older men” she received as a child star. The 27-year-old actress, who rose to fame playing Alex Dunphy in the hit sitcom Modern Family, revealed that she was targeted by “male predators” from a young age.
In an interview with DailyMail.com, Ariel shared: “I am familiar with male predators because I worked in Hollywood at a young age. I started at age four. I don’t wanna say too much about it, but by the time I was on a laptop and cell phone, I was getting inappropriate messages from older men, and it caused trauma.”
She continued: “The experiences I had in person and online as a child have affected me so deeply that I’ve had to go to therapy for it. The movie and TV industry is a dark place.”
Ariel, who appeared in Modern Family for its entire 11-season run, also admitted that she struggled to cope with the show’s end in 2020.
She said earlier this year: “It was hard.
“We were like a real family. It was weird knowing it would just be over, and I wouldn’t get to see everybody all the time anymore. It was like, wait, yeah, wait, we’re not going to be together on Monday? So on the one hand, I didn’t want it to end, but at the same time, I was ready to start something new as an adult.”
Ariel was just 11 when Modern Family premiered, and she had no idea that the show would become such a huge success. She revealed: “I was 11 when it started. I don’t think I had any idea of it was going to be successful or not. I was just like, ‘Oh awesome, I got a job.'”.
“What I was so excited for was to get the chance to work with Al Bundy (Ed O’Neill, who portrayed her grandfather Jay Pritchett in the comedy).
“But once the show started, it was an immediate hit, and it was so exciting to have that opportunity. And being on the same show for so long? I feel like that doesn’t really happen anymore.”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
