Ariel Winter to replace Demi Lovato in NBC comedy series Hungry

Modern Family alum Ariel Winter will star in the lead role of NBC's forthcoming comedy series Hungry, replacing previously attached star Demi Lovato, EW has confirmed.

Lovato dropped out as lead actor due to scheduling conflicts, but will still remain on the project to executive produce alongside manager Scooter Braun, Sean Hayes, Todd Milliner, Scott Manson, James Shin, and Hot in Cleveland creator Suzanne Martin, who also writes for the series.

Hungry will follow a group of friends in a food issues group who "help each other as they look for love, success, and the perfect thing in the fridge that's going to make it all better," according to Deadline, which first reported the news of Lovato's recasting. The singer has been candid about their previous struggles with an eating disorder.

James Burrows (Cheers, The Comeback) will direct the series, which will also star Valerie Bertinelli, Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias, Ryan McPartlin, Alex Brightman, and Ashley D. Kelley. Production will begin some time next week, with a table read set for Tuesday.

Winter is best known for her role as Alex Dunphy, the studious and sarcastic middle child of the Dunphy family, in ABC's Emmy-winning comedy series Modern Family, which bowed in 2020 after 11 seasons. She's also appeared in R.L. Stine's Story Club, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Sofia the First, and Elena of Avalor, among others.

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