Judy Greer turned down Claire’s audition for Modern Family because she didn’t want to be “America’s Mom.”

The actress said she was “really torn” about the decision but was “not ready” for such a role.

Judy Greer wasn’t ready to settle down yet.

During a recent podcast appearance, the Halloween Kills And Best Christmas competition ever The actress revealed she turned down an audition for a lead role in the hit sitcom Modern family because she didn’t want to be known as “America’s Mom” ​​at this point in her career.

Sit down with Modern family Alum Jesse Tyler Ferguson on his Dinner is on me On the podcast, Greer recalled being asked to try out for the role of Claire Dunphy, the matriarch ultimately played by Julie Bowen. “This was a time in my career where I started (playing characters with children),” she said.

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“It sounds so silly saying it out loud, but I’m being honest,” Greer continued. “In a film I would have a child. And then there was this audition opportunity where I had three kids, one in high school and on a TV show… and you really have to think about those things to be successful,” and obviously Modern family was a great success. In a movie, people kind of see it and then forget about it. On a TV show it’s like being a mother.

Noting that she “didn’t even want kids,” Greer explained, “It wasn’t even on the table for me. I thought, ‘I don’t think I’m going to audition for this.’ I was really torn, but in the end it was obviously not like I understood it at all, but I was just like, ‘I don’t know if I want to be America’s mother yet.'”

The actress was in her early 30s at the time and the role “felt so limiting compared to what I was already doing,” she said. “And apart from the perception of who you are as an actor. It is also a lifestyle. I thought, well, I really like traveling, and I like making all these movies, and I like going to all these places, and I like meeting all these people.

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Greer added, “I wasn’t ready for this in my career.”

Modern family would run for 11 seasons, from 2009 to 2020, and followed the lives of the blended Pritchett-Dunphy family. The show won 22 Emmys, including five for Outstanding Comedy Series and two for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (both for Bowen).

Although not part of the cast, Greer guest-starred in a first season episode as Denise, an ex-girlfriend of Claire’s husband Phil (Ty Burrell). In the episode, Claire becomes jealous of Denise after she reconnects with Phil on Facebook.

Elsewhere on Ferguson’s podcast, Greer talked about how “stressful” auditions can be and called Julia Roberts her “north star” for what it is like to be a movie star. Listen to her full episode above.