Sometimes the adult characters in Modern Family were just as youthful as the children, and there are many things about Claire Dunphy that keep her young at heart. She enjoys scaring others and dressing up on Halloween, she loves going to silly blockbuster franchise movies, and she jokes around with her husband on a regular basis.
While Claire's controlling and type-A personality allowed her to make smart decisions, she sometimes acted much younger than she was, proving that she could be a grown-up in some situations and forget all about maturity in others.
Grown Adult: Considered Helping Mitch And Cam
Watching Cam and Mitch get married was heartwarming and entertaining as everything went wrong. This day was so special since they were raising Lily and had started a family together.
In the season 3 episode "Aunt Mommy," Claire proved that she could be mature by telling Mitch that she could give him and Cam an egg. She wanted to help them have another baby since they were having trouble adopting again. Mitch and Claire later realized that this would become too intense and tricky, but the thought counted for a lot. The siblings also bonded after this as they knew how much they meant to each other.
Immature: Didn't Always Tell Phil Exactly What Was On Her Mind
While he was a hilarious and beloved character, Phil sometimes joked around too much on Modern Family, and this happy-go-lucky attitude could upset Claire as she wanted them to have better and more serious communication.
In the season 2 episode "Regrets Only," Claire was mad at Phil after a huge argument, and he said that he didn't know why they were fighting. Instead of continuing to be angry, Claire could have told Phil what was on her mind. She sometimes expected him to read her mind, which was immature.
Grown Adult: Worried About Haley's School And Dating Life
While Claire might have been a little too enthusiastic about her type-A tendencies, she was a caring mother and all she wanted was for her children to be happy.
Claire often worried about Haley, from her budding relationship with Dylan in season 1 to when she got kicked out of college a few seasons later. Whenever Claire wasn't sure what Haley's future would hold, she proved she was a mature adult, as she just wanted to see her daughter on a path that made sense and would bring her the least amount of suffering.
Immature: Was Jealous Of Gloria And Got Competitive With Her
Gloria and Jay's son Joe had many adorable scenes and he was a favorite young character.
When Claire learned that her dad and Gloria were expecting a baby, Claire thought that it was great because a pregnant Gloria would gain some weight. Claire was often competitive with Gloria and jealous of her when there was no reason why they couldn't have a better and more positive relationship. Gloria would have been more than happy to hang out with Claire more regularly, as she liked being part of the family.
Grown Adult: Ran For City Council
While Claire could be controlling and confusing, she also had many positive qualities, from being super organized to knowing when to fight for a cause that was important to her.
After asking for a stop sign in her neighborhood and realizing that no one was listening to her, Claire decided to run for city council. While she didn't win, this was still a mature decision, as she chose to take action and try to make a positive change in her city. It was inspiring for her family to see her so passionate.
Immature: Had Trouble Firing Someone And Avoided Conflict
The traits that sometimes made Claire a difficult person to live with made her excel at work. Her organized nature meant that she was a great leader and always knew how to get the job done.
But at the end of season 7, she had trouble firing someone, and this was a time when she was fairly immature as she didn't handle the situation at all and just avoided it. She could have calmly approached the employee and talked to them about what they were doing wrong.
Grown Adult: Was Happy To Work For Jay And Took Over The Company
Claire didn't always get along with Jay or feel like he understood her, but she happily accepted a job at his closet company. When he retired and passed the company along to her, she was glad to take over as well.
Claire showed a lot of maturity here as not everyone is able to work for family members without getting stressed out or fighting with them over power dynamics. Claire often wanted to control everything in her life, but when it came to Jay's business, she truly enjoyed the job that she did.
Immature: Pretended She Was Going Home From NYC
The Modern Family characters went on several trips and it was always fun and entertaining to see them in a new setting.
At the beginning of season 8, the Dunphys went to New York City, and Claire and Phil said they were going home but spent some extra time on vacation. It was definitely wrong of them to lie to their children, and they should have known better, as Claire always wanted her kids to be honest and do the right thing. The kids also lied about staying, which proves that Claire didn't act her age here.
Grown Adult: Talked To Luke About Death And Grief
In the season 3 episode "The Last Walt," the Dunphys' neighbor, Walt, passed away. Luke and Walt had been friends, so Claire and Phil were nervous about how he would grieve the loss.
Claire did her best to help her son through this tough time and she proved that she could be a mature grown-up when necessary. She made sure that he was grieving and when she learned that he stole Walt's TV because he used to associate the TV light with Walt being safe and alright, Claire could tell that Luke was healing.
Immature: Wondered If Alex Created A Boyfriend
Fans watched Alex grow up and she never lost her passion for studying and learning. This meant that sometimes, she didn't have much of a social life, at least not compared to her older sister Haley.
In the season 6 episode "Strangers in the Night," Alex said she had a boyfriend named Alec, and her parents didn't believe her. This was awkward as no child wants their parents to say that they literally created a partner out of thin air. It was immature for Claire to think this way, as she should have known that her daughter would never lie about something like that. Alec ended up being totally real.