Modern Family star Sofia Vergara stars in the new Netflix series Griselda. And for her role, she went so far as to suffer injuries that doctors described as “crazy” .
Some actors live their role to the fullest, and sometimes suffer the consequences. For Griselda, a new Netflix series directed by the creators of Narcos, Sofia Vergara played Griselda Blanco, Colombian drug baroness at the origin of one of the most profitable cartels in history.
The actress was best known for the series Modern Family. But for Netflix, she puts herself in the shoes of a terrifying woman, for a dramatic role in the biopic series. And it didn’t come without risks: Sofia Vergara recently revealed that she suffered “incredible”injuries during filming, which could even impact her life in the long term.
Sofia Vergara’s injuries on the set of Griselda were ‘unbelievable’
At a recent press conference, Griselda actress and executive producer Sofia Vergara revealed that her injuries sustained during filming were so severe that doctors considered them “unbelievable.”
Sofia Vergara has addressed drastic changes to her appearance on the show, so she can transform into a Colombian drug lord. Unfortunately, its interpretation could lead to permanent health problems.
“I was trying to change my appearance as much as possible without looking like I was in a Halloween costume,” she explained. “I wore underwear that minimized my chest, held my butt in so it wouldn’t move. I assumed different body positions for six months, and for the first time in my life I couldn’t go to work. I would wake up in the morning and I couldn’t get up.”
“I was a 50-year-old woman in these strange positions, walking hunched over, smoking,” she continued. “And the doctor was telling me things like, ‘You’re crazy. You can’t do that at your age.» They injected me with something. Now I think I have a problem because of the way I walked. But it was worth it, even though I probably won’t think like that in 10 years. Now I have to be very careful. I have to do physiotherapy from time to time because if I forget, it comes back.”
A desire to disappear behind the character of Griselda Blanco
Sofia Vergara also explained that she doesn’t want viewers to see her again in her portrayal of Modern Family character Gloria Pritchard. Which was no small feat, since she starred in the series for 11 seasons, from 2009 to 2020.
“The most important thing for me was to disappear. Let Sofia disappear, let Gloria from Modern Family disappear. I didn’t want people to think it was Gloria with a fake nose,” she clarified.
“We had to do a lot of testing to try different methods. I was nervous about this because sometimes I watch movies and it’s very distracting to see the wig that sticks out. So I wanted her to look human and also be able to play with all these things that I was carrying. I had false teeth, I had plastic all over my face, my eyebrows were fake. Even my nose was wrong.”
Griselda has been available on Netflix since January 25, 2024.
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