Modern Family star hasn't spoken to her mum in over three years

Modern Family actress Ariel Winter has spoken about her strained relationship with her mother for the first time, and admitted she hasn't spoken to her mum in over three years.

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“I don’t [have a relationship with my mom],” Ariel said in an interview on Good Morning America. “We haven’t spoken in three and a half years.”

Last may Ariel became legally emancipated from her mother Chrisoula Workman.

She explained: “It's really hard to have that kind of drama in your life and to be going through that court situation and have an open court case and have everybody look at it and have the media around you trying to paint different pictures,” she continued, adding: “It's already hard enough for abuse victims, but it's harder in the public eye when everybody has an opinion.”

The 18-year-old spoke about her "stage mother" mum, and the difficult relationship they shared while she was growing up because Ariel was pushed into becoming an actress.

"I think that when I was born, it was kind of already decided what I was expected to be. And so I was kind of pushed into the industry," she explained, before adding: "That's not to say I don't love it and it's not my passion now. I do love it."

The actress, who was removed from her mother Chrisoula Workman's home in October 2012 amid allegations of abuse and placed in the care of her sister Shanelle Gray, shared her joy on Twitter after a judge signed off on court documents freeing her from her parents' control last year.

Ariel tweeted: "I am now officially emancipated!!! I'm really lucky I have an amazing support system and lovely people in my life who have given me the support and guidance to have been given this wonderful opportunity."

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