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'Modern Family' might already be walking away as the big winner at this year's Primetime Emmy Awards, but as far as series stars Ty Burell and Julie Bowen are concerned, one of the greater rewards of working on the lauded series is turning the societal tide when it comes to attitudes about homosexuality.
Asked how they felt on being on a show with multiple gay characters, Burrell — who won the Emmy this year for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series — told reporters, "Definitely, it feels very very good to be on a show that seems to be changing a lot of minds … it's a great thing to peripherally go to events and talk to family and have people talk about the characters the same way they talk about other characters."
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Added Bowen, who took home Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, "As a straight woman in a straight couple, I feel marginalized."
Bowen was kidding, of course; the actress quickly added, "To me, it's absurd that it is an issue, but in that it is an issue, I'm glad that we're helping to change minds."
As for who Bowen was rooting for outside of her own show (which managed to take home the first four statuettes of the night), Bowen put her support behind "Hot in Cleveland" star Betty White, who was up against her in the category.
"If I didn't have a dog in this fight — and I had two — I would have voted for Betty White," Bowen noted.