Meet Julie Bowen’s Kids! All About theModern FamilyStar’s Sons Oliver, John and Gusav

Mar. 15, 2025

Julie Bowen, Oliver McLanahan Phillips, John Phillips and Gustav Phillips attend a basketball game on May 1, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.Photo:Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images

Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images

Humor is part ofJulie Bowen’s parenting approach with her three kids: Oliver, John and Gustav.

The Emmy-winning actress married real estate investor Scott Phillips in 2004, and they laterlater divorcedin 2018. Together, they welcomed their first son, Oliver, in 2007. Two years later, Bowen gave birth to twins John and Gustav in 2009.

While she’s best known for playing Claire Dunphy on the long-running sitcomModern Family, Bowen says that her role as an on-screen mom is different from being a parent in real life.

While Bowen tries to respect their privacy, she enjoys sharing funny anecdotes about their antics.

From which of their mom’s projects they’ve seen to how she’s adapted to being a mom of teenage boys, here’s everything to know about Julie Bowen’s kids: Oliver, John and Gustav.

Oliver McLanahan Phillips, 17

Julie Bowen’s son, Oliver McLanahan Phillips.Julie Bowen/Instagram

Julie Bowen/Instagram

Bowen and Phillips welcomed their first child together, Oliver McLanahan Phillips, on April 10, 2007.

“I heardJulianne Mooresay that her kids will never watch anything that she does. I was like, ‘Okay, if Julianne Moore, who’s a goddess, an Academy Award winner, and her kids won’t watch her, then you know what?I’m going to stop pushing it,’ " she told PEOPLE in January 2023.

However, Bowen later revealed that one of her sons got around to watching her 1996 sports comedy film,Happy Gilmore, after his friend suggested it.

“He made [my son] watch it andhe loved it, but he did say to me, ‘Who are you in it?’ ” she recalled during an appearance onSherriin October 2024. “He could not believe it was me at all.”

Julie Bowen and her kids: Oliver, John and Gustav.Julie Bowen/Instagram

“I used to stand outside the shower and yell, ‘Pits! Nuts! Butts! In that order!’ " she told PEOPLE in January 2023. “Nobody was teaching teen boys to get clean.”

Oliver and his brothers are fans of the line and have incorporated the products into their daily routines.

“They’ll be about to leave for school, and one of them will go into the bathroom. And I’m like, ‘Did you have to pee?’ And he’s like, ‘No, I needed to put on my moisturizer,’ " she shared. “I’m like, ‘Oh my God! They actually use it.’ "

In his free time, Oliver seems to have followed in his mom’s artistic footsteps, but behind the camera rather than in front. The teen has his own photography account on Instagram, where he posts snaps he’s taken fromlive performances,high school basketball gamesand other fun events in his life.

John Phillips, 15

Julie Bowen’s son, John Phillips.Julie Bowen/Instagram

Bowen and Phillips welcomed their twin sons, John and Gustav Phillips, on May 7, 2009.

“I was pregnant with twins, and I kept thinking they weren’t going to hire me,” she told PEOPLE in 2015. “They kept bringing me in over and over and sort of staring at my humungous belly, and I thought, ‘I’m never getting this job.’ ”

Bowen was ultimately cast as the Dunphy matriarch, and her twins even made a subtle appearance, as she was still pregnant with them in the pilot episode.

John has grown up to be a bit of a “stunts” man, performing tricks with his twin or watching television upside down while standing on his head, Bowen shared during a May 2018 appearance onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Julie Bowens with her three kids: Oliver, John and Gustav.Julie Bowen/Instagram

“That’s Johnny, I love him so much,” she explained as hostJimmy Fallonshowed a photo of the teen standing on his head in the hallway. “But what the hell is he doing? … This is his jam … he does everything he can do upside down.”

The actress continued, “He’s now into the stunt zone. … [His] genius twin brother throws things at him, and he catches them between his legs [while standing on his head].”

In July 2023, John paid a visit to the hospital after he had an accident during a family getaway, resulting inmultiple broken bones. That said, it’s unclear if it was because of a stunt gone wrong.

“It’s not a vacation without a trip to the ER for a broken wrist … Both bones broken, but John is on the mend and his brothers were total champs,” theHubie Halloweenstar captionedInstagram photos.

Gustav Phillips, 15

Julie Bowen, John Phillips, Gus Phillips and Oliver Phillips seen at the premiere of “Dog Days”.Blair Raughley/AP

Blair Raughley/AP

Bowen and Phillips celebrated the arrival of their son Gustav alongside his twin John on May 7, 2009.

Though Bowen was a lead inModern Familyfor over a decade, she admitted in a January 2023 interview with PEOPLE that her three sons don’t particularly care for her portrayal of Claire Dunphy.

When asked if she’s watched the sitcom with her kids, Bowen said there was only one occasion, and she took the opportunity to point out a fun fact.

“I said to my twins, ‘You’re in my stomach right there. You’re in this episode.’ Because I was pregnant with them on the pilot,” she recounted.

TheHorrible Bossesalum added, “They thought that was pretty funny and they watched some of it. But in front of me, they will not watch it.”

Now, Bowen’s younger sons are all grown up and have joined their older sibling in teenage antics — such as retreating to their rooms instead of spending time with their mom.

During a September 2024 appearance onToday, Bowen said that the majority of her communication with her children occurs over Snapchat when she’s away for work.

Bowen added, however, that despite their distance, the family is still close, and her sons enjoy supporting her upcoming roles.

“They’re excited forHysteria. They’re excited forHappy Gilmore,” she said of her latest projects. “They get excited for new stuff.”

source: people.com