Actress Ariel Winter, best known for her role as Alex Dunphy on Modern Family, has revealed that she received “inappropriate messages from older men” when she was still a child. The now 27-year-old star said she had to deal with the disturbing attention of "male predators" while working in the entertainment industry 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 also said that both her online and in-person experiences left lasting scars. “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,” she added.

Life After Modern Family

Ariel was part of Modern Family for all 11 seasons and said that it was hard to accept when the show ended in 2020. Earlier this year, she reflected on how emotional the final days were. “It was hard,” she said. “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?”

Even though part of her didn’t want the show to end, Ariel admitted she was also ready to move on. “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,” she explained.

Starting Young in the Industry

Ariel was only 11 when Modern Family began. At that time, she had no idea how big the show would become. “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,’” she said.

She was especially thrilled to work with Ed O’Neill, who played her on-screen grandfather, Jay Pritchett. “What I was so excited for was to get the chance to work with Al Bundy (Ed O’Neill),” she said.

When the show quickly became a hit, Ariel was amazed by how lucky she was. “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,” she said.