Most TV viewers can separate their favorite actors from each star's respective on-screen character. At least, they'd like to think that they do.
But let's be real — anyone who has seen 'Harry Potter' has a hard time seeing Daniel Radcliffe as anyone other than Harry. And Vin Diesel, for example, is somewhat typecast when it comes to his roles. Despite a history in acting pre-'Fast & Furious,' he's Dom to plenty of fans.
Similarly, fans of 'Modern Family' put most of the show's actors into tidy little boxes based on their characters' traits. Unfortunately, that led to disappointment in at least one case where fans met a cast member off set.
Some of the show's actors do share traits with their on-screen characters. Jesse Tyler Ferguson, for example, has at least one thing in common with Mitchell. But his small screen partner, Eric Stonestreet — AKA Cam — has a history of disappointing exuberant fans.
The problem, Eric pointed out years ago, is that he's quite different from Cameron Tucker in real life. For one thing, he's not really gay; Jesse Tyler Ferguson has called him "gay-for-pay." But jokes aside, Stonestreet's personality is also vastly different than Cam's.
As Digital Spy quoted the actor as saying, people don't like that Eric does not act like Cam when he's off the 'Modern Family' set. In fact, some former fans have even messaged Stonestreet on social media to express their frustration that he wasn't the same person in real life as he pretended to be on set.
To be fair, many viewers do become attached to their favorite sitcom characters. But to expect an actor to literally be the same person as a character that they're acting as in a show? It's a bit silly, TBH.
Stonestreet kept a sense of humor about the situation, though, saying that though that one fan stopped following him on Twitter, he wasn't that bothered by it. He called the situation "hilarious," explaining that fans were saying he was "ruining the show for them."
Well, in show business, most people like to call this whole scenario good acting. Kudos to Stonestreet for maintaining a sense of humor while being told he's not as wonderful as the person he pretends to be while on the clock.
Some fans on Reddit had a bit of fun at the critic's expense, too, joking that they couldn't believe the headline "'Modern Family' fans are disappointed that Eric Stonestreet isn't flamboyant in real life." One commenter said they could have mistaken that for an Onion headline.
Others pointed out that pre-'Modern Family,' Stonestreet actually won an Emmy for a "creepy angsty" role. If that doesn't make things clear for the grumpy former fan, nothing will!