Ty Burrell, who plays the hapless dad Phil Dunphy in the US sitcom Modern Family, took time out from a 10-day sightseeing tour of the UAE to dish out advice to aspiring actors and filmmakers at New York University Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
The bashful actor told a packed audience the reason why he thinks Modern Family has been the best show of his life.
“Sadly, I don’t think I’m that different to Phil. I walk into light bulbs, I trip and fall into water, and I’m constantly trying to make my daughters laugh with a 0 per cent success rate – unless I fall over, in which case I have 100 per cent success,” he said.
Burrell has two daughters, ages 2 and 5.
“I’m much less mature than my five-year-old,” he said.
His girls enjoy watching the show on the sofa alongside their dad, though he admits“they don’t fully understand what it’s about”.
Burrell branched out into voiceover work with his latest kids movie, Mr Peabody and Sherman. He told the audience how that compares with the six years he has spent on Modern Family.
“Voiceovers are a very precise medium. It can be harder than acting. I’m not very good at it. It can get crazy,” Burrell said.
“You don’t know what you’re saying after a while, you just see the mouth moving. At times, it took 100 takes for one line. But for a guy coming into this later in life, it’s all so exciting. I’m living my second childhood.”
The 47-year-old has been enjoying Abu Dhabi’s tourist hotspots with his wife, Holly, since he arrived in the UAE last Friday. He tried out the rollercoaster at Ferrari World, dropped into local pilates and yoga centre Bodytree Studio and dined on sea bass and lemon tart for lunch at Saadiyat Beach Club, accompanied by Emirati director Ali Mustafa and Image Nation chairman Mohamed Al Mubarak. He was also scheduled to appear at The Act Dubai on Thursday night.
artslife@thenational.ae