Sofía Vergara’s Transformation into Drug Kingpin Griselda Blanco’s Mindset

Sofía Vergara first encountered Griselda Blanco—the notorious Colombian crime boss she portrays in Netflix’s limited series “Griselda”—while watching the 2006 documentary “Cocaine Cowboys.” Though now Emmy-nominated for the role, Vergara initially didn’t think much of the villain known as the Black Widow. “I grew up in Colombia during the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s,” Vergara explains from her Los Angeles home. “We knew who was who, what drug dealer was doing what, from where. They were household names.”

However, Griselda Blanco wasn’t one of those names. Vergara assumed Blanco was merely a mule or the wife of a drug dealer, never imagining she ranked among the biggest narco traffickers.

It was years later, while reading about Blanco mid-flight, that Vergara gained a clearer understanding of her. “I realized she was operating in L.A. and Miami, not Colombia,” she recalls. “She preceded Pablo Escobar, the Rodríguez Orejuela brothers, and the Ochoa brothers, who were the well-known capos of that era.” At that moment, Vergara recognized that Blanco was a character she could portray.

The character of Griselda Blanco was a far cry from Gloria Pritchett, the role Vergara famously played on “Modern Family.” Yet, that wasn’t what initially drew her. “I wasn’t thinking, ‘Oh, I’m gonna show them.’ I love doing comedy, I love ‘Modern Family,’” she insists. Having no formal acting training at that point, Vergara was drawn to Blanco because she knew her.

“I’m Colombian, I’m a woman, I’m an immigrant, I’m a mother. So, there were many similarities, though also many differences,” she continues. “Maybe I don’t want to kill my husband, but I understood why she wanted to [laughter].”

There was just one problem: Blanco was still alive at the time, having been released from federal prison in 2004 and deported to Colombia. “I couldn’t romanticize her or make her a hero,” Vergara says. After Blanco was murdered in 2012, Vergara was finally able to see the story through to its conclusion.

Blanco’s death gave Vergara the freedom to pursue the role fully. The success of Netflix’s “Narcos” gave her a path forward. She knew its creative team would understand the character. Surprisingly, Netflix was immediately supportive of the idea.

Vergara’s confidence wasn’t unwavering, though. As the shoot approached, doubt crept in. “How am I gonna play this?” she remembers asking herself. She worried about her ability to portray such a complex character. To prepare, Vergara enlisted renowned acting coach Nancy Banks, who had worked with stars like Margot Robbie and Jennifer Aniston. “I needed people to forget about Gloria Pritchett.”

While her hard work with Banks was crucial, Vergara needed additional physical transformations to fully embody Blanco. “I had to make sure I didn’t look like myself or Gloria,” she explains. Though Blanco’s face isn’t widely recognizable, the change had to be natural and unobtrusive, as Vergara worked 16- to 17-hour days, in every scene for the TV show. She wore wigs, prosthetics, and even changed her teeth.

She describes how tricky those fake teeth were. “I had fake teeth at the top and bottom. Initially, they’d fly out of my mouth during scenes where I was barking orders. It was funny, but you can’t be giving orders to kill someone while lisping.” The lower dental prosthetics were eventually removed.

Despite initial anxiety over acting in her native Spanish, Vergara found it liberating. “I didn’t have to translate, look for words, or think about it. It was all about feeling the scene,” she explains. “It was amazing.”

During filming, Vergara and the team realized they were creating something special. “The sets were spectacular. You really felt like you were in that era,” she says, noting the quality of the scripts and ensemble cast. “Our focus was on doing something that felt really good.”

Now, Vergara has her first Emmy nomination for a drama role. “I thought the show would get nominated, not me,” she laughs. “I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but I’m excited for myself and everyone involved. It was unexpected.”

Although she was nominated four times for “Modern Family” without winning, Vergara considers the nomination for “Griselda” a victory. “To be honest, for me, it’s already a win,” she says. “My best reward was at the premiere in Miami where the audience applauded as Griselda got away with horrific things.”

Vergara enjoyed her darker role so much that she and “Griselda” co-creator Eric Newman are already working on another project. This next venture will feature a character “very different than Griselda,” but still strong and powerful. Vergara is excited for what’s to come.

Source: Los Angeles Times