On Modern Family, all the Dunphy kids are well-known for their character traits. Haley was seen as the most popular and Alex was the most intelligent. It took a while to discover what Luke’s was but as he grew older, there was one trait that became more prominent. He was really manipulative.
It’s not a nice trait but then again, Luke hasn’t exactly been a model son. He is always up to no good, leading Manny astray with his schemes and taking advantage of his family’s kindness to fuel his agenda. Would you like to see more? Keep reading to discover 10 of Luke’s sneakiest plans, ranked from dumbest to most intelligent.
Getting a moving violation
Fans may recall that Luke and Manny took Cam’s car for a spin, driving around the block to try and impress the girl Manny liked (“Virgin Territory”). The boys do end up making it to and from the house safely, just about avoiding detection by Claire.
However, it turns out he did get in trouble with the law after Claire and Phil discover that Luke had hidden a red light ticket from them (“Baby on Board”). Depending on what the letter said, the truth probably would have come out at a later date, especially if Cam found out about the additional points on his license that he didn’t realize he had.
Claiming Alex’s essays as his own
Not one of Luke’s best moments, as there were many issues with his plan to pass off Alex’s work off as his own. In the episode “A Stereotypical Day”, Alex has returned home from college after contracting mono. However, instead of looking after her, the Dunphys decide to use Alex to their benefit.
Luke’s selfishness involves sneaking Alex’s laptop out of her room, calling it “the Holy Grail.” Yet, did he forget that schools have a policy against plagiarism and that some teachers also keep copies of these essays? Luke was lucky that he got caught by Alex because he would have been in so much more trouble in school.
Hiding trash in the basement
Luke hiding the trash in the garage has to be one of his worst thought-out plans. In the episode “The Old Man & the Tree,” Luke is shown encouraging Phil to succeed in his physical challenge. However, he has an agenda of his own as he doesn’t want Phil to discover what he is hiding in the basement.
It turns out that Luke has been neglecting his chores, hiding six weeks’ worth of recycling in their basement because he keeps forgetting to take it out. While Phil is on his elliptical rider, Luke says he will give Dylan some fireworks if he gets rid of the trash. As you can guess, with Dylan onboard the plan doesn’t work and Luke ends up owing six weeks allowance to his parents.
Using the twins to buy alcohol
Luke is probably one of the most irresponsible characters in Modern Family and he proved this once again when he used Haley’s twins to get him alcohol. This occurred in the episode “Perfect Pairs” when all the Dunphys offer to babysit the twins for their personal gain.
It turns out Luke’s new girlfriend thinks he is 21. Since she asked him to pick up some wine, he tries to use Alex’s I.D. When this doesn’t work, he notices another customer doesn’t get questioned about his age because he had a baby with him. Unsurprisingly, Haley and Dylan were furious when they found out Luke’s agenda. What makes it worse is that he didn’t even think to ask one of his sisters to go and buy it for him.
The secret house party
Another irresponsible thing act of Luke’s was in the episode “The Party,” when he ropes Lily into helping him throw a secret party. This all came about after the parents ask Manny and Luke to babysit Lily while they have a night to themselves. The friends decided to host a party to try and impress two students from their school.
However, they all cut it short when Manny accidentally sets off the smoke alarm when he suspects a party going on. His instincts are proven right when the scene cuts to several party guests hiding in Luke’s bedroom. The funny thing is, why didn’t Luke believe that they wouldn’t be found out when Mitch and Phil were searching the house for them? It was designed to be a disaster.
Crush on Alex’s friend
One of the most hilarious plans Luke came up with was in the episode “A Fair To Remember.” This episode sees the Dunphy-Pritchett-Tuckers attend a county fair, where Luke decides to hang out with Alex and her new friend, Sienna. It looks out of character until you realize that he has taken an interest in Sienna.
As Alex tries her best to keep him away, Luke pays Jay to arrest Alex and take her to the fair’s jail. Now that he and Sienna are unsupervised, he manipulates her into believing his crush had already left. He also adds that he has “never kissed a girl” and is delighted when Sienna volunteers. His plan is only foiled when Alex catches up to them.
Getting a reward for starting a fire
In the episode “Tableau Vivant,” fans witnessed how scheming Luke could be when he was rewarded for a crime he committed. In the beginning, Luke revealed his excitement over an awards ceremony he will be attending. He explained that he will be receiving a medal for putting out a fire at his school.
However, this is not the whole truth, as Manny tells the viewer that Luke started the fire in the first place. With his family and the school calling him a hero, Luke has no qualms about hiding the truth. Unfortunately for him, the truth eventually comes out. Manny rats Luke out in front of the whole family.
His frozen assets
Fans have to admit they couldn’t help but laugh at Luke when he misinterpreted the meaning of frozen assets. This was all revealed in the episode “Hit and Run,” when Haley asked Luke if she could borrow some money off him because she owed her friends $900.
The scene then cuts to Luke’s talking head, who reveals that he has saved $1,217 because of a little ruse he has set up. He gets Claire to pack him his lunch and then hides it from Phil, who gives him the money to buy more food. It’s quite ingenious until you see that he has frozen it in a block of ice after overhearing businessmen talking about frozen assets.
Manipulated his family into giving him a car
“If there were any S.A.T. questions about tricking your parents, I’d be going to college.” That’s how proud Luke is of his plan in “The Graduates.” Fans will probably agree that by this stage Luke has become a master at manipulating everyone around him.
When his parents gifted him a watch, Luke returned the favor by giving them a car - which they hated. At the end of the episode, Phil and Claire decide to give it back because “it’s too much.” Luke then reveals that this had been his plan all along, knowing Claire wouldn’t let him have it unless he manipulated her into thinking it was her idea. It’s pretty clever, actually.
Getting Claire to do his project
Luke isn’t as stupid as he makes himself out to be, especially when it comes to getting someone else to do his work for him. In the episode “Egg Drop,” Jay and Claire get competitive after they helped Manny and Luke complete their science project - which involved designing a carton that would protect an egg when dropped from a one-story height.
However, knowing how much a perfectionist Claire is, Luke came up with a plan to make their parents do it. It would have worked, too, if Manny hadn’t felt guilty and confessed the truth to Jay and Claire. Luke was probably livid with his friend for caving in.
