Mitchell, Cam click as couple and as friends off camera, too

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This article was published 25/03/2010 (5677 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

HOLLYWOOD — They just might be TV’s most addictively adorable couple. And they just might be prime time’s most perfectly lovable parents.

They’re committed and cautious, crazy in love and fiercely protective of their family environment and, week in and week out, consistently, hilariously funny.

They’re Mitchell Pritchett and Cameron Tucker, the proud pair of adoptive gay dads who contribute one-third of the domestic dizziness to this season’s best new comedy, ABC’s Modern Family.

For actors Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet, who portray the sometimes-overwhelmed new parents of adopted Chinese daughter Lily, it’s all about the chemistry.

Seated side-by-side on the couch in the lavishly appointed 20th Century Fox soundstage that serves as Mitchell and Cameron’s living room, the two performers told a pack of visiting TV critics that the depth of their characters’ relationship springs from the brilliance of Modern Family‘s writing staff and the trust they place in each other as actors.

"I think chemistry comes from an openness that a performer has, and Jesse is an actor who’s willing to put himself out there," says Stonestreet, who plays heavyset stay-at-home dad Mitchell. "I consider myself to be kind of the same way, and I think the chemistry comes from the sense of vulnerability we have with each other. It works for our relationship on the show, and it works for us as actors, as well."

Ferguson, who is openly gay, and Stonestreet, who is decidedly straight, said they knew from their first meeting that they’d be able to find the right vibe for the Cam/Mitchell pairing.

"It didn’t take long — I think it was in the (screen) test, when Eric read for the part, that we started to click," Ferguson recalls. "And after Eric got the role, we decided to go out and celebrate; we went out for coffee, and halfway through this ‘coffee date’ we realized that it was Valentine’s Day. It was too perfect."

Modern Family, which premiered last fall, follows the extended-family exploits of the fictional Pritchett clan, which is led by patriarch Jay (Ed O’Neill) and his hot-bombshell rebound-marriage spouse, Gloria (Sofia Vergara), and her budding-romantic son, Manny (Rico Rodriguez), and also includes "old married" couple Claire (Julie Bowen) and Phil (Ty Burrell) and their three youngsters as well as Mitchell, Cam and Lily.

The critically acclaimed series has already won awards from the Directors Guild of America and the Writers Guild of America, and was nominated for best musical/comedy series at this year’s Golden Globe Awards (the trophy went to another rookie sensation, Fox’s Glee).

Stonestreet, whose past TV credits include C.S.I., Nip/Tuck, Pushing Daisies and The Mentalist, said Modern Family‘s cast and crew have created the most supportive and nurturing atmosphere he’s encountered as a TV actor.

"What’s really cool about this show is that we’re all covered," he said. "It’s like my improv training has taught me — fall, and the net will catch you. And here, we really, truly have the great opportunity to risk failure, because I believe that it’s in risking failure that you find the gold.

"We know we have a director who’s at the top of his field; we know we have writers who are at the top of their field. And between the two of us, I know I never have to worry about Jesse, because I know he’s going to be great."

 

brad.oswald@freepress.mb.ca

 

TV worth watching

Keep Your Head Up, Kid: The Don Cherry Story (Sunday/Monday at 8 p.m., CBC) — In addition to being a biographical miniseries about one of Canada’s most noteworthy (and notorious) sports icons, this ambitious two-parter has the added local appeal of having been shot here in Manitoba.

 

Ice Road Truckers (Wednesday at 8 p.m., History) — Just a week after a bunch of 18-wheelers got bogged down on Manitoba’s quick-thawed winter roads, History premieres Season 3 of its immensely popular reality show that follows the truckers who haul goods across the frozen North.

 

TV on DVD

The Abbott and Costello Show: The Complete Series (release date: March 30) — This comprehensive collection features all 52 episodes of the legendary comedy duo’s TV series, which aired from 1952 to 1954. Included, of course, are many of the routines and sketches that made Bud and Lou big-time vaudeville stars. The series was named by both Time and Entertainment Weekly as one of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time.