Ed O’Neill’s Surprise TikTok Cameo Goes Viral — and So Does the Reveal About His Beautiful Blended Family
Ed O’Neill — the sitcom legend best known as Al Bundy from Married… with Children and Jay Pritchett from Modern Family — just broke the internet in the most wholesome way possible.
It all started when his daughter, Claire O’Neill, dropped a TikTok that featured her lip-syncing to Tupac’s “Hit ’Em Up.” Then, out of nowhere, her dad pops into frame and joins in — casually mouthing the lyrics to one of the most aggressive diss tracks in hip-hop history.
And the internet? Lost. Its. Mind.
Not just over Ed’s unexpectedly hilarious cameo, but because it sparked a huge wave of curiosity — wait, that’s his daughter?!
That curiosity led many fans to discover something they hadn’t known: Ed O’Neill and his wife Catherine Rusoff used a surrogate to have their two daughters — and the surrogate was a mixed-race woman. Claire and her sister Sophia have always stayed pretty low-key, so this was one of the first times many people even saw O’Neill’s family dynamic.
Cue the viral reactions:
“Al Bundy being the dad of two gorgeous Black girls?? We did not have this on the 2025 bingo card!”
“Him having mixed-race daughters makes sense. Jay Pritchett had swag AND a moral compass.”
“No wonder he was unbothered by Gloria’s heat on Modern Family. Man lives that life.”
To clarify: Ed’s wife, Catherine Rusoff, is not biracial, as some originally speculated. She’s a white actress who also appeared in Married… with Children. The couple has been together since 1986, and they chose to expand their family via surrogacy — with a Black/mixed-race surrogate, which is where their daughters’ heritage comes from.
And let’s talk about Claire for a second, because she’s now officially that girl on TikTok. Not only did she drop a funny, viral video with her dad, but she did it with confidence, grace, and a whole vibe that had users saying, “She’s stunning” and “She’s her mom’s twin!”
Even Ed’s former co-stars joined in on the fun. Sarah Hyland (who played Haley Dunphy on Modern Family) commented, “I’m screaming,” while Ariel Winter (aka Alex Dunphy) wrote, “This is amazing.”
And honestly, same.
It’s rare to see a celebrity family go viral for something that isn’t drama, but this? It’s just good energy all around. A beloved actor, a confident daughter, and a family dynamic that caught people off guard — in the best way.
In a world of manufactured social moments, this one felt real, and reminded us that sometimes, the most iconic dads keep their coolest roles off-screen.
Shoutout to Claire for the cameo of the year, and to Ed O’Neill for proving once again: he’s not just a legendary sitcom dad — he’s a real one too.
