Modern Family was renewed for a seventh season on May 7, 2015, by ABC.[1] It was announced that the show will be recasting Joe, the son of Jay and Gloria, who has been played by Pierce Wallace for the previous two seasons.[4] On August 7, 2015, the role of Joe had been recast by actor Jeremy Maguire.[5] The table read for the premiere happened on August 3, 2015, being confirmed by Sofia Vergara.[6] Filming for the seventh season began shortly after the table read.[7]
Haley learns about Andy's feelings for her, but does not interfere with Andy's proposal to Beth - leading her to get back together with Dylan. Alex, like so many college freshmen, finds herself in an interesting boyfriend situation and does not want to break up with him. Mitchell gets laid off and begins to paint, freaking Cameron out, leading Cameron to try to find a job for him. Jay and Gloria look at preschools for Joe, and Andy and Haley learn their feelings for each other but decide to not be together.
Alex leaves home for college earlier than Phil and Claire thought, leaving Haley in charge to give her some advice. Luke reluctantly agrees to assist Phil at an open house, rather than hang out with his friends. Claire, Jay, Joe, Manny, and Gloria make up an excuse in order to skip Lily's soccer game. Mitchell finds a new job in coaching his daughter's team with Cameron's help.
Phil helps Haley convince Claire to allow Dylan to move in temporarily, but soon changes his mind after seeing how intimate living together is. Mitchell takes on a much needed consulting job for Jay's biggest rival - Closets, Closets, Closets, Closets! Gloria and Cameron disagree on how to handle Manny's girl problem at school.
Phil and Lily bond while building a habitation for ducks. Claire is nervous about pitching some ideas for Jay's closet company. Manny and Gloria both have crushes with whom they have trouble speaking and Cam befriends his new rents, a fraternity.
Gloria is excited to participate in jury duty while Jay struggles in order to help Joe's preschool teacher. Phil tags along with Manny and Luke's class for a community service day, while "Take your daughter to work day" allows Claire to introduce her daughters to the professional world. Mitchell and Cameron both want to invite their respective friends to a party and ask Gloria for help.
Phil and Claire begin to experience their teenagers' bad sides when Luke gets arrested for driving without a license, while Alex sneaks out of a liquor store. Phil is really mad at Luke and is considering punishing him as judge and jury. Cameron helps Gloria recreate and sell a hot sauce which comes from her family. Mitchell helps Jay make a good video to accompany his receiving an award. Andy and Beth cross paths with Dylan and Haley at the movies and Haley and Dylan break up. Phil and Claire discover Alex and Rubén together. Mitchell plans to open his own law firm.
Thanksgiving is here and Phil is helping Mitchell and Cameron's friend sell his sexy and sleek house. Each member gets the bright idea of having some 'fun' time by sneaking into the new house. Unbeknownst to each other, they choose the same day and the same time which leads to some hilarious confusion. Meanwhile, at Jay and Gloria's, a surprise plan for the whole family turns into a disaster as Jay further surprises Gloria, who, in turn, surprises him. After everyone has left, Haley says goodbye to Andy at the sleek house and closes the door. She gives into her feelings for Andy and runs back to him and they share a passionate kiss.
Gloria wins a bid at an auction for a seminar with famed doctor and author Debra Radcliffe, who wrote a self-help book titled "Clean Out Your Junk Drawer." Jay, Claire, and Mitchell unwillingly participate with Gloria, Phil, and Cameron to sort through their emotional junk and it becomes something of a competition between the couples. Elsewhere, Haley meets up with Alex and confesses about the incident with Andy [vague].
Gloria rents a cabin in the mountains for the whole family to celebrate the holiday. However, unexpected incidents affects their holiday. Mitchell and Cameron are determined to make up for their bad caroling performance from last year. Haley and Andy cannot keep their hands off each other and Jay has a huge announcement to make that catches Claire off guard.
Claire tries to make Phil force a couple, with whom they are friends, to pay for dinner as they never offer to do so. Jay is surprised when the couple with whose child Joe has a playdate supposedly has a lot in common with him and Gloria, particularly their age difference. Mitchell cashes in a birthday coupon from Haley, Alex, and Luke, so they scramble and host an impromptu tour of celebrity homes. Lily has her first crush.
Claire, Luke, and Haley try to free the ducks while Phil visits Alex at Caltech. Jay and Mitchell are in charge of Lily's first sleep-over with her Vietnamese dance troupe. Manny helps Gloria and Cameron with their hot sauce project.
Before taking over Jay's closet business, Claire decides to get the house in order by forcing the family to part with unused items, while Alex gets emotional after finding Sanjay's sweatshirt. Cameron worries when Jay finds a new hobby piloting planes. Gloria is taught golf from Mitchell in order to connect with Jay.
Claire's new position makes Phil feel like a housewife. Gloria's provocative sauce ad gets Jay jealous. Mitchell and Cameron rent out the apartment above their own, but end up spying on their guests.
A thunderstorm brings everyone to Jay and Gloria's, from where Jay tries his best to leave to meet his Navy friends at a pub. Phil tries to be a hero and redeem himself from an embarrassing scene while Mitchell and Cameron try to salvage Lily's birthday party. Haley and Andy struggle with their relationship.
Claire impresses her family when she turns into super-mom, both working and doing everything at home, leading to suspicion from Phil. Jay and Gloria go to great lengths to not get caught doing things they should not be doing and Mitchell and Cameron are treated like second-class guests at their friends' wedding.
Phil and Claire try to hide innocent flirtations with a real estate client and yoga instructor, respectively, from one another. Meanwhile, Jay's new hobby of starring in his own web-series, "Jay Talking," is met with criticism from an online troll. Elsewhere, Mitchell and Cameron attempt to teach Lily how to ride a bike, resulting in both a broken arm and a head injury for Cameron.
After deciding to take a spontaneous trip to Paris, Phil and Claire stay up all night to adjust their bodies to the time change. Meanwhile, Cameron’s scorned sister, Pam, comes to stay with the family, much to Mitchell’s chagrin. Elsewhere, Gloria and Manny find themselves in a predicament when they inadvertently tamper with Jay’s remodel of the master bathroom.
Manny and Luke babysit Lily so the adults in the family can have some fun, which includes Phil and Mitchell seeing a movie, Claire and Gloria going to a spa, and Jay and Cameron hitting a sports bar to watch a big fight, but Claire suspects the boys are throwing a party.
Claire and the kids hide a stray dog from Phil; even though Jay says he doesn't want new friends, Gloria invites a new couple over; Cameron rents out the upstairs apartment to a Christian rock band.
Claire is convinced there's a mole in the company; Phil confronts Auntie Alice about stealing Gloria's hot sauce recipe; Jay teaches Joe how to be a handyman.
Manny talks the family into taking the train to attend Dede's wedding in Portland; Claire and Mitchell work on a toast; Phil and Cam are excited to spot their favorite author on the train; Jay's comments about Dede are overheard putting the wedding in jeopardy.
Claire struggles to find the right time to fire an employee; Phil thinks he caught Luke with a girl; Alex comes home for the summer, a fact forgotten by everyone; Haley finds out that Andy has a job opportunity to move back to Utah; Jay refuses to believe it might be difficult to reenter the workforce.
Reception
The seventh season received mixed reviews from critics. Kyle Fowle from The A.V. Club gave half of the season's episodes a B− or less. The middle third of the season was more warmly received, especially the episodes "Playdates," "Spread Your Wings," and "Clean for a Day." The three episodes received a B+, A- and B+, respectively.
Ratings
Viewership and ratings per episode of Modern Family season 7
