Ferguson, 50, caught up exclusively with PEOPLE at the opening night of Giant on Broadway<\/a> in New York City on March 23. During the conversation, PEOPLE asked the actor which lines from Modern Family<\/a>, which ran from 2009 to 2020 on ABC, he hears most often while out and about.<\/p>\n \u201cShame,\u201d Ferguson told PEOPLE, referring to the word his character, Mitchell Pritchett, would often yell.<\/p>\n Jesse Tyler Ferguson in a ‘Modern Family’ scene \u201cPeople are always saying \u2018shame\u2019 to my face,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd also, \u2018Where’s Lily?\u2019 \u201d he added, a nod to him and his onscreen husband Cam Tucker, (played by Eric Stonestreet<\/a>, 54) were constantly losing track of their young daughter, Lily.<\/p>\n Ferguson went on to share what date nights with his real-life spouse, producer and actor Justin Mikita<\/a>, 40, look like these days.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, they look very far and few in between,\u201d Ferguson said. \u201cWe don’t have a lot of them because we’ve been both so busy \u2026 Usually, it ends up just like it’s like a dinner out.\u201d<\/p>\n Justin Mikita and Jesse Tyler Ferguson at the premiere of ‘Giant’ in N.Y.C. on March 23, 2026 The actor also told PEOPLE about his latest project, the play TRU, in which he plays famed author Truman Capote<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m doing this play very immersively for 99 people a night in a brownstone \u2026 a Gilded Age brownstone on the Upper East Side,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cSo that alone really intrigued me \u2014 to be able to do a play really intimately. Last summer I did Shakespeare in the Park <\/a>for 2,000 people a night, so to do something for 99 people a night just feels so different and so scary,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n Ferguson added, \u201cAnd I’m always looking for things that scare me and challenge me. And then to do it intimately and then also let it be Truman Capote, which is in itself such a hard thing to tackle, it’s been a good thing for me, because I rarely get scared now.\u201d<\/p>\n Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter<\/a> to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer\u200b\u200b, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.<\/p>\n \u201cI’ve done things that have really scared me and they always pay off in dividends, so I’m always looking for the next thing that scares me and this was certainly it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The actor also spoke to PEOPLE about his podcast, Dinner\u2019s on Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson<\/a>, in which he goes out to eat with his guests at dining spots across New York City and Los Angeles and interviews them over a meal.<\/p>\n The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cBrooke Shields<\/a> is coming on this week, and I’m so excited to sit down and talk with her,\u201d Ferguson said.<\/p>\n \u201cI’ve been trying to get her on for literally years. I have Michael Kors on tomorrow, which I’m so excited about. Darren Criss<\/a>, I had Shoshana Bean<\/a>, who’s a very dear friend of mine \u2026 Jenna Fischer’s<\/a> coming on soon when I go back to L.A.,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI get great people. I’m very lucky,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n![\"Jesse](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1bca9a7d32c59c45e3703ea5da3069be.jpeg\"\/)
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Credit: Danny Feld\/ABC<\/p>\n![\"Justin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bda616542bc70678159df076795ee264.jpeg\"\/)
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Credit: John Nacion\/FilmMagic<\/p>\n