Actress Ariel Winter arrives at the 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2016. Photo / Getty Images
Actress Ariel Winter arrives at the 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2016. Photo / Getty Images
She officially became emancipated from her mother two years ago in 2015 after claiming she had been physically and emotionally abused.
And Ariel Winter has now made more explosive claims about her "really rough" upbringing, suggesting her estranged parent Crystal Workman sexualised her to the extent that she would have made her pose nude age 12 if the opportunity arose, the Daily Mail reported.
Speaking in an in interview with the Hollywood Reporter, the actress, 19 - who shot to fame as a child on ABC hit comedy Modern Family - claimed her mother would force her to wear inappropriate outfits and even restricted her diet.
Ariel Winter, third from left, with her Modern Family co-stars. Photo / Getty Images
Winter said her mother sexualised her starting at the age of 7 and would dress her "in the smallest miniskirts, sailor suits, low-cut things, the shortest dresses you've ever seen".
"People thought I was 24 when I was 12. If there was going to be a nude scene when I was that age, my mother would have a thousand per cent said yes," she added.
Sleep-deprived nights became the norm for the actress when she was forced to stay out at industry events with her mother when she was only 12 years old.
"You don't get to mess up when you have somebody around you who is constantly watching," Winter said.
The actress also said that food was "very, very restricted" and her education was neglected for years.
Ariel became close with Modern Family's on-set studio teacher Sharon Sacks and, although she was afraid of the consequences of speaking out against her mother, she reached out to the mentor for help.
"She was very scared," Sacks said. "Her mother kept her out late at night at these ridiculous parties. She was 12 and 13 years old and had to be on set at 6.30, 7.
"I would order a couple lunches in my name so Ariel could eat one of them. I could tell she was hungry."
Ariel, seen here in 2012, was taken into the care of her sibling in a court-ordered guardianship in May 2014. Photo / AP
Sacks reported the situation to the Los Angeles Child Protective Services, which culminated in Winter's older sister Shanelle receiving custody of the actress in 2014, before Winter became emancipated nearly one year later.
"I went through a really rough period, a really bad chapter," Winter said and admitted she hasn't spoken to her estranged mother in five years.
In addition to her family trauma, Winter was changing from a girl into a woman - no easy task especially in the spotlight.
"The first season I was very thin, no breasts, no hips," Winter remembers. "The next year, I had huge boobs and a butt."
Ariel's mother has always denied the abuse claims. Photo / Getty Images
Her appearance became the talk of online trolls and Winter realised that the only way to combat the hate was to stand up to it.
"If you want to wear a short skirt and show your body like I do, it doesn't mean you're a whore. And it doesn't mean you're not one," she said.
Winter is dating Levi Meaden, 30, whom she says is "her partner in crime".
This is not the first time Winter has made claims about her upbringing; she first alleged her mother had been physically and emotionally abusive in October 2012. She was taken into the care of her sibling in a court-ordered guardianship in May 2014, before declaring that she was officially emancipated via her Twitter page in May 2015.
She said: "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."
Winter with her sister Shanelle Workman. Photo / Getty Images
Winter's mother has always denied the abuse claims.
Workman recently lashed out at her estranged daughter's choice of outfits in an interview with US Weekly magazine.
Speaking in June, she said: "She needs to grow up. I would tell her to dress properly, be the beautiful person she is. I feel sad that she feels the need to expose herself when it's not necessary.
"Ariel is smart, beautiful and talented. She is a legitimate actress. She does not need to do this. She is beautiful with her clothes on."
