Modern Family's Sarah Hyland Is A Redhead Now, And She Can Thank Outlander

screenshot from Ellen degeneres interview Sarah Hyland
(Image credit: The Ellen Show)
(Image credit: The Ellen Show)

If you want proof that celebrities are just fans too, look no further than Sarah Hyland. The Modern Family actress is sporting a fresher redhead look, and it's all thanks to Outlander (or should we say Droughtlander).

Sarah Hyland is a natural brunette, but she has officially gone red for a new look. Hyland revealed that her new red hair is because she just “watched all of Outlander for a second time.” Here's the photo of her new ‘do on Instagram:

A photo posted by on

Many will recognize the similar hair coloring to Outlander's Jamie Fraser (played by Sam Heughan), and Sarah Hyland is apparently a big fan of the time travel period piece. Outlander shot into prominence in 2014, thanks in no small part to the head-over-heels steamy relationship between Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie. The show, which began as a series of books written by Diana Gabaldon, had all the ingredients for an epic romance: beautiful actors pulling great performances and, well, a lot of naughty sex scenes (there were some historical bits in there as well).

Outlander finished up its fifth season on Starz back in May. This actually coincided near the same time that Sarah Hyland's long-running show Modern Family had its series finale. So according to the math, Hyland re-watched all five seasons, or 67 episodes. It's no wonder she took Outlander inspiration for her newfound style.

At the beginning of quarantine in May, Sarah Hyland had actually dyed her hair a brighter pinkish red. Over the course of months that followed, though, it seemed Hyland fell back into her traditional darker hues.

The rest of the Outlander fanbase may not be as drastic as Sarah Hyland in their love of the show, but they still show up and show out. (My grandmother has rewatched the show countless times and was even given a life-size cardboard cut-out of Jamie for her birthday.) Droughtlander, an endearing term used to describe when there are no new episodes, can clearly still be felt.

Though Season 5 and 6 were greenlit by Starz at the same time in 2018, production for Season 6 of Outlander was postponed like many shows because of the coronavirus pandemic this past year. But Starz recently released a teaser trailer confirming that filming was beginning for the new next season. It's both good news and bad news, because that means Droughtlander could extend into 2022.

Sarah Hyland dyed her hair just in homage to old seasons of Outlander. Hopefully Season 6 comes out sooner rather than later – or we might have a nation of redheads to answer to. You can relive Modern Family days gone by with the full series available streaming on Peacock and Hulu now.

Lauren Vanderveen
Movies and TV News Writer

Freelance writer. Favs: film history, reality TV, astronomy, French fries.