Eric Stonestreet Dishes on a Potential 'Modern Family' Reboot, His New Prime Video Series & More

PW: Who was your main inspiration when you brought Cam's character to life on Modern Family?

Eric Stonestreet: Just like every audition that I'd had over the years, I had to prepare for it and figure out a way to make the words mine and make them believable and real. And I used my beautiful mom as a guidepost. I was doing a version of my mom for 11 years on TV, and people would tune in who know me and know my mom, and be like, 'Oh my God, that is so much like your mother right there when you gave that look' or whatever. But you know, I need to create a character that was real, because so much of the dialogue and so many of the situations were over the top, but life experiences that people don't realize that they're having until they turn on a TV show and say, 'I've done that exact same thing.' I had to create a grounded, believable character that walks the edge between believable and unbelievable. So I use my mom as my guidepost.

PW: Would you say that you have a lot in common with Cam?

There's no way I would be successful if I didn't have a lot in common with Cameron. You know, everyone wanted to make Cameron's sexuality the topic or the main aspect of who he was. It was part of who he was, but not the defining characteristic of who he was. So I'm a passionate person. I love bringing joy to people [and] I live my life upward and outward. I have a lot in common with my character.

PW: I heard that a Cam and Mitch spin-off almost happened, is that true?

ES: It's true that there was talk of a spin-off right after the show ended. A few months afterward, one of our creators, Chris Lloyd, and two of our writers, Brad [Walsh] and Paul [Corrigan], they created a script that would have put Jesse and I, Mitch and Cam, back in Missouri, with Lily living in my hometown, and ABC, for business decisions, chose not to go forward with that.

PW: Where do you think Cam and Mitch would be today?

ES: I think Mitch and Cam...we'd be sailing to the Caribbean. When I was on the Norwegian Joy cruising, having a great time, I said, 'Oh my gosh, if Modern Family came back, like, it would be such an incredible two-part episode of us being on a cruise ship.' And then I was like, 'How did we never do an episode on a cruise ship?' It felt like an opportunity missed. So my answer is, now we'd be on a cruise ship.

PW: It would be amazing to see the entire Modern Family cast together again. Do you see a reboot happening?

ES: I don't think never is the right answer in any situation. You know, you just never know what can happen. I think the characters that we created, that Steve and Chris wrote, the writers cultivated, and we, you know, took great care of portraying are beloved and I think it's not outrageous to think that an audience would like to check in, no matter how many years away after the show it is. So I wouldn't say never, but I would say, not likely right now.

I was just thinking the other day that because, you know, I'm on social media, Jesse's on social media, Sophia is on social media. We're all there, and we all see people's comments of, 'Come back to TV, come back to TV.' And at some point, you know, a network, a streamer, they're in the business of making money. They have to at least think, 'Well, maybe we should check in with that cast.' I don't think it's outrageous for me to say, and I don't think it makes me an egotistical person to say we were a great cast and we had a great thing. We had great writers and people loved the show. So it's not outrageous to think that we would come back at some point.

PW: We all know that you're skilled at comedy, but do you have a desire to branch out into other genres?

ES: Well, the year before I got the job on Modern Family, I killed three people on network television. That was most of my roles before. On procedural dramas, [I was] usually a creepy bad guy or something like that. You know, I just love creating characters. I love bringing joy to people. And I'm not a no-to-anything person. It has to appeal to me. I have to want to do it. And I never wanted to be one of those actors that was like, 'Well, I do comedy, but what I really want to do is drama.' Because, you know, the audience is used to me in a certain role. I think as people find me in roles before Modern Family, they're always surprised when they're like, 'Oh my God, that was the guy that played Cam on Modern Family.' Or when they see me in movies like Bad Teacher or Identity Thief, they sometimes can't believe that's me. So, my goal is just to bring likable, unlikable, lovable, unlovable, creepy, un-creepy characters to the screen and have an effect and make people feel something. So who knows what's next?

PW: If you had the freedom to choose any show that you could be a guest star on which would it be and why?

ES: I'm gonna start watching Landman, the new Taylor Sheridan show. And that sure speaks to me, the whole Texas oil business, that whole world is something that I could see myself in. There's also a new show called Dr. Odyssey that's on a cruise ship, and now, with my being the godfather to Norwegian Aqua, maybe I could have a guest starring role on Dr. Odyssey as one of the patients, or maybe one of the guest doctors, since now I have cruising experience.

I love Reba McEntire's new show. I'd love to be on Happy's Place. Oh, and Matlock. Kathy Bates is one of my favorite actors of all time, and I contacted my manager a couple of weeks ago, and it's like, I don't know if this show's gonna keep going, but I would, for sure, love to share some space with Kathy Bates, as she's one of the greatest performers of all time. I would love to be in a scene with her. She's a wonderfully sweet person. So that would be up there.