Ariel Winter Opens Up About Being in a 'Season of Change' After Leaving L.A.: 'Trying to Heal and Grow'

Mar. 15, 2025

Ariel Winter attends the 4th Annual Legacy Ball at SLS Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Beverly Hills on October 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.Photo:Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty

Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty

Ariel Winteris living her best life four years afterModern Familycame to an end.The 26-year-old actress, who played the middle Dunphy child Alex for 11 years, has moved out of Los Angeles. Now, she’s enjoying life at a slightly slower pace these days.“I don’t think L.A. was ever really my vibe, but I just was nervous,” Winter toldE! Newsof her decision to relocate with her boyfriendLuke Benward.“And then this opportunity presented itself, and I was like, you know what? I’m in a season of change, and I’m really trying to heal and grow and evolve,” she continued of the move to a quieter place. “It’s opened up my world a lot.“SinceModern Family’s conclusion in 2020, Winter has stayed pretty low-key, and she told the outlet that the transition after the sitcom’s decade-long run was “hard.““When you go from working with somebody almost every single day for 12 years, and then it’s kind of like, ‘Poof.’ Now everybody’s everywhere.“Ty Burrell, Sarah Hyland, Nolan Gould, Ariel Winter and Julie Bowen in ‘Modern Family’.Eric McCandless/Disney General Entertainment Content via GettyWinter said she and her former castmates “try to keep in touch as much as we can,” but regardless, they’re bonded for life.“You spend so much time with people, you really do become the family that you portray.”She’s particularly close withNolan Gould, who played her younger brother Luke Dunphy on the show.“He is my brother. He was my first best friend, which is a really beautiful thing,” she shared. “We met when he was 10 and I was 11, and we’ve gone through so many stages of life together. And we have stuck through it all, thick and thin.”Like Winter, Gould has also been open about the challenges he faced in the aftermath ofModern Family. After spending more than a decade of their formative years on the show, Gould, 25, admitted toJesse Tyler Fergusonon hisDinner’s on Mepodcast, “I find it hard to bond with peopleabout the things that everyone went through, like, what was high school like?“Gould told his former costar, though, that he “would not change my childhood” despite it looking pretty different to his peers.“I’m really happy. I got to be part of such an incredible show. I know that a lot of other child actors don’t have it as lucky.“Ariel Winter and Nolan Gould attend the 4th Annual Legacy Ball Honoring Ariel Winter at SLS Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Beverly Hills on October 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.Lila Seeley/Getty"All these doors closed on kind of a traditional lifestyle, but opened up these really beautiful doors on a traditional, nonlinear lifestyle,” he continued.“So I don’t know. I’m happy with where I’m at now and I’m so glad I got to be a part of the show. I wouldn’t change that.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Modern Familycan be streamed in full on Hulu.

Ariel Winteris living her best life four years afterModern Familycame to an end.

The 26-year-old actress, who played the middle Dunphy child Alex for 11 years, has moved out of Los Angeles. Now, she’s enjoying life at a slightly slower pace these days.

“I don’t think L.A. was ever really my vibe, but I just was nervous,” Winter toldE! Newsof her decision to relocate with her boyfriendLuke Benward.

“And then this opportunity presented itself, and I was like, you know what? I’m in a season of change, and I’m really trying to heal and grow and evolve,” she continued of the move to a quieter place. “It’s opened up my world a lot.”

SinceModern Family’s conclusion in 2020, Winter has stayed pretty low-key, and she told the outlet that the transition after the sitcom’s decade-long run was “hard.”

“When you go from working with somebody almost every single day for 12 years, and then it’s kind of like, ‘Poof.’ Now everybody’s everywhere.”

Ty Burrell, Sarah Hyland, Nolan Gould, Ariel Winter and Julie Bowen in ‘Modern Family’.Eric McCandless/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

Eric McCandless/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

Winter said she and her former castmates “try to keep in touch as much as we can,” but regardless, they’re bonded for life.

“You spend so much time with people, you really do become the family that you portray.”

She’s particularly close withNolan Gould, who played her younger brother Luke Dunphy on the show.

“He is my brother. He was my first best friend, which is a really beautiful thing,” she shared. “We met when he was 10 and I was 11, and we’ve gone through so many stages of life together. And we have stuck through it all, thick and thin.”

Like Winter, Gould has also been open about the challenges he faced in the aftermath ofModern Family. After spending more than a decade of their formative years on the show, Gould, 25, admitted toJesse Tyler Fergusonon hisDinner’s on Mepodcast, “I find it hard to bond with peopleabout the things that everyone went through, like, what was high school like?”

Gould told his former costar, though, that he “would not change my childhood” despite it looking pretty different to his peers.

“I’m really happy. I got to be part of such an incredible show. I know that a lot of other child actors don’t have it as lucky.”

Ariel Winter and Nolan Gould attend the 4th Annual Legacy Ball Honoring Ariel Winter at SLS Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Beverly Hills on October 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.Lila Seeley/Getty

Lila Seeley/Getty

“All these doors closed on kind of a traditional lifestyle, but opened up these really beautiful doors on a traditional, nonlinear lifestyle,” he continued.

“So I don’t know. I’m happy with where I’m at now and I’m so glad I got to be a part of the show. I wouldn’t change that.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Modern Familycan be streamed in full on Hulu.

source: people.com