‘Modern Family’ to feature transgender child actor in upcoming episode: Report

ABC sitcom “Modern Family” will feature a transgender child actor in the episode to air on Wednesday evening, Variety reported on Tuesday.

“In the upcoming episode — titled “A Stereotypical Day” — parents Cameron “Cam” (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) permit their daughter Lily (Aubrey Anderson-Emmons) to have her transgender friend Tom over for a play-date,” explains Variety. “Both parents are filled with pride that they have done well in raising an accepting and open-minded child. But that pride quickly diminishes when Lily insults her friend, which they use as a teachable moment.”

Transgender 8-year-old actor, Jackson Millarker will portray Tom, noted NewNowNext.com, which originally broke the story. Jackson’s official Internet Movie Database profile shows no other acting credits but for Wednesday night’s “Modern Family” episode.

The episode comes two seasons after the Cam and Mitch characters — who have been a couple since the show’s debut in 2009 — were married in the fifth season finale in May 2014.

This appears to be the first scripted program on a non-cable broadcast network to feature a transgender child actor portraying a transgender character. Cable and streaming-service outlets offered viewers real-life and fictional explorations of transgenders.

In August, the E! cable network canceled the docuseries “I Am Cait,” which followed Caitlyn Jenner, formerly Bruce, after her transition. It ran for two seasons but saw a significant drop-off in viewership in its sophomore year.

Emmy-winning “Transparent,” starring Jeffrey Tambor as transgender woman Maura Pfefferman, will premiere its fourth season on Amazon.com’s streaming service in 2017.