Sarah Hyland Claims 'Modern Family' Producers Made Her Wear Heels Despite "Excruciating Pain" From Gout

The actress was born with kidney dysplasia.

In part 1 of the series finale, Mitchell and Cam settle in on their new normal, and Phil and Claire decide that one of the kids needs to move out in order to take control of the house again. Meanwhile, as Gloria becomes more successful at work, she notices Jay, Manny and Joe don't seem to need her as much. In part 2 of the series finale, the entire family discovers saying goodbye is much harder than it seems on "Modern Family," WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8
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Iris Goldsztajn
By Iris Goldsztajn
published

Sarah Hyland rose to fame as Haley on Modern Family, which ran from 2009 to 2020.

But while the popular TV show did great things for Hyland's career, she has alleged that her health wasn't properly considered during filming.

The actress has been very open over the years about being born with kidney dysplasia, having undergone several kidney transplants, and dealing with the complications of living with a chronic illness, including pain from associated conditions and mental health difficulties including suicidal thoughts.

In a new interview with her Modern Family costar Jesse Tyler Ferguson, on his Dinner on Me podcast, Hyland spoke about dealing with gout while filming the show, and needing to use crutches on set (via BuzzFeed News).

"I was always focused on essentially just surviving and knowing my lines and being there 100 percent when they yelled 'action'—and then immediately collapsing when they yelled 'cut,'" Hyland explained (via Us Weekly).

She also said that while she was experiencing "excruciating pain," the producers were adamant that she wear heels.

"They put me in high heels," she told Ferguson. "They had not established my outfit yet, and they insisted that I was wearing heels."

Hyland has previously addressed how dealing with her health condition affected filming Modern Family for her.

"There are some episodes of Modern Family where I do not remember filming because I was asleep," she said in 2022 (via Yahoo! News). "Dead ass asleep. The episode where Haley asked [Luke for] money and he's like, 'Don't worry, I've got it on ice.' It's in the freezer or something. The entire episode I was asleep."

Iris Goldsztajn
Iris Goldsztajn
Morning Editor

Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Bustle and Shape. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.

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