The Modern Family star opened up about her love life at a Los Angeles awards event, nearly eight years after her split from ex-husband Scott Phillips.
Julie Bowen is seeing someone. She just won't say who.
The Modern Family actress, who played Claire Dunphy across the show's eleven seasons, opened up about her new relationship at Step Up's 2026 Annual Inspiration Awards in Los Angeles, according to Bollywood Shaadis. She called her new partner a "lovely friend" who's "smart and funny," and made clear she isn't fussed about looks, even if this one happens to check that box too.
"I need smart and funny. Those are the two [characteristics I look for in a partner]. I don't care what people look like though he happens to be good-looking. But I don't care what people look like. I like the brains," she said.
No name, no photo, nothing beyond that. Which tracks, given how private Bowen has kept things since her marriage ended.
The Scott Phillips years
Bowen married Scott Phillips, a real estate investor and software developer who's stayed largely out of the Hollywood conversation, back in 2004. The two built a life together away from cameras and raised three sons: Oliver, now 19, and twins Gustave and John, 17.
The marriage lasted more than a decade before the pair separated in 2017. Bowen filed for divorce in February 2018, and it was finalized by the end of that year. Court filings cited by Bollywood Shaadis list "irreconcilable differences" as the reason, though neither Bowen nor Phillips has gone into detail publicly about what actually broke things down. Some reports at the time suggested the two had simply drifted, living increasingly separate lives even while still married.
What stands out, per that same reporting, is how undramatic the split was. No public sniping, no messy fallout playing out online. The divorce settlement reportedly split their assets evenly, and the two have kept up a working co-parenting arrangement ever since. When their eldest, Oliver, left for the University of Oregon in 2025, Bowen marked it with a social media post that included photos with Phillips, a small sign of how the two have stayed connected as parents even after moving on separately.
Eight years is a long stretch to stay quiet about your personal life in an industry that rarely lets you. Bowen's choice to talk now, at a public event and on her own terms, says something about how she's chosen to handle this one. Whether her new partner stays anonymous for long is anyone's guess.
Be the first to comment
Join the argument. No password, just your email or a passkey.