Modern Family Star Nolan Gould Tells Ellen DeGeneres He Graduated High School at Age 13

He plays the intellectually challenged Luke Dunphy on the hit TV show, but in real life, this young actor is no dummy!

By Alyssa Toomey Oct 12, 2012 3:29 PMTags

Nolan Gould sums up his intelligence best on his Twitter bio:  "I am not a dummy, I just play one on TV."

And he's not kidding. The 13-year-old Modern Family star—who plays the intellectually challenged Luke Dunphy on the hit sitcom—has not only recently graduated from high school, but he's also planning to begin college courses.

The high school grad stopped by The Ellen DeGeneres show this week to talk about Modern Family's success (the show has now won three consecutive Emmys for Outstanding Comedy Series) as well as his impressive academic achievements.

"As I'm driving in my limo, I'm like, 'Wait a second, I'm 13, this is my third time at the Emmys'," he told Ellen. "It's like, what am I supposed to do with the rest of my life? It's kind of all downhill from now."

Downhill at the ripe age of 13? We seriously doubt it for this smart star! Not only is Gould a high school grad, but he's also a member of Mensa, the largest and oldest IQ society in the world (Nolan reportedly has an IQ of 150!), and he's not slowing down anytime soon.

"Over the summer I did a lot of studying and I took an exam and tested out of high school, so I'm hopefully going to go on and do some online community college courses," he said.

Who knew? It is possible to be a totally cute celeb and an absolute genius at the exact same time.

Check out the full clip above to hear Nolan's chat with Ellen, see him dance Gangnam Style and even play the banjo!