Doug and Michelle Hiller have broken their silence on why they pulled their twin daughters from “Modern Family” more than a decade ago.
The couple, parents to identical twins Ella and Jaden Hiller, revealed in a new interview with Woman’s Day magazine that their daughters’ exit from the hit ABC sitcom came down to one simple observation: the girls stopped having fun. Michelle, a stay-at-home mother, explained that the decision crystallized midway through the show’s second season. “Halfway through season two their personalities had started to develop, and it was really clear to us that they weren’t enjoying their time on set. So we told the producers the girls wouldn’t be coming back,” she said.
The Hiller twins had landed the role of baby Lily Tucker-Pritchett almost by accident. Doug Hiller told the magazine he never set out to make his children stars. “We saw an ad on Craigslist looking for identical Asian girl twins, so we sent in a picture and they were cast. It was crazy,” he said. The girls appeared in 36 episodes across the first two seasons of the series, which premiered in 2009 and tracked three interconnected Los Angeles families.
Financially, the gig was modest but purposeful. Without agents, Ella and Jaden earned $200 per girl per day, Michelle disclosed. She added, “They didn’t have an agent, so they got $200 per girl per day. All the money they earned went into their college funds.” The earnings went entirely toward the twins’ future education rather than being touched for expenses.
The show’s producers did not accept the Hillers’ departure without a fight. When Doug and Michelle informed them the girls would not return, the network responded with sweeter offers. More money and improved contracts were dangled in front of the family. The couple refused to budge. Their daughters’ final scenes aired during season two, closing the book on their brief Hollywood careers.
From season three forward, the role of Lily passed to Aubrey Anderson-Emmons, who grew up in front of viewers across eight more seasons until the series concluded in 2020. The character was the adopted daughter of Cameron Tucker and Mitchell Pritchett, played by Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Where the Hiller twins had been pre-verbal infants, Anderson-Emmons took Lily into her talkative childhood and adolescent years, delivering punchlines and emotional beats across more than 150 episodes.
Aubrey, now 19 and also known as Frances Anderson, has since pivoted toward music. She released her debut EP, “Drown,” last year and has pursued a career as a musician rather than returning to acting in any sustained way.
The original “Modern Family” baby casting had been one of Hollywood’s quieter twin-switch arrangements, common for infant roles requiring long hours on set. The Hillers’ Craigslist discovery and subsequent exit remained largely unexamined until now, with the parents choosing this moment to explain the full reasoning behind their choice.