'I was unprofessional': Sofia Vergara reveals how being a judge on 'AGT' almost derailed Netflix's 'Griselda'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: After struggling to get back into character while filming 'America's Got Talent' in the midst of creating her Netflix hit 'Griselda', Sofía Vergara has opened up about her regrets. Having committed to 'AGT' in the middle of production, the 51-year-old now says she found it taxing and wishes she had stayed focused on the miniseries.
Sofía was questioned about how she managed to balance the two very different TV projects during a June 2 Netflix FYSEE event in Los Angeles.
She quipped, "I don't know what I was thinking. The most absurd thing. But I mean, that tells you... if I was a real actress, I would have said absolutely not; I’m not doing this. Listen to how crazy this is...I agreed to become 'Griselda' for three months, like three crazy, intense months."
"I think I had four days off to become Sofia, do AGT, which is completely another move to do 'AGT', that energy. And then finish that for a month, and immediately, two days later, start again [filming] 'Griselda'."
"When I went back, I was like so unprofessional," she added.
"I went back to Griselda [and] the director [during] the first scene, I remember we were shooting outside an airport, and then [he] comes after the first two scenes like, ‘Sofia, I think, uh, during lunch I'm going to go into your trailer with my iPad, and I'm going to show you the rhythm and the tone of voice that you were doing for 'Griselda' because you're sounding like 'AGT'."
"I'm like okay, okay. It took me some time. I shouldn't have done that. I should have not stopped shooting 'Griselda' to do 'AGT'."
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Sofia Vergara admits to waiting for Griselda Blanco to die before filming the miniseries
For her first foray into drama, the actress and talent show judge received great accolades from reviewers when she played "Cocaine Godmother" Griselda Blanco. Despite being a passion project for over 15 years, Sofia explained that she was happy with the response from fans following the show's premiere and was happy that she had nailed the character.
The 'Modern Family' actor considered filming the series when the real-life Griselda, who founded one of the most successful cartels in history, was still alive.
"I started working, finding out more information about her, hiring writers, investigating, but she was still alive," Sofia said.
"She was released from jail, and she was living in Medellin [Colombia]. And I'm like, I can't do that project right now with this woman that was a monster, destroyed lives, her family's life, her kid's life, and I'm gonna make a movie, and now she's out of jail."
Sofia joked, "So I had to wait for her to die," as the audience chuckled at her genuine remark.
"But then, you know, she was killed in a very horrific way, the same way, unfortunately, that she used to kill people. And so I took the project again, but I didn't really know what to do with it. And then I started seeing on TV Narcos [the Netflix series]. And I was like, Oh my god, these are the people that I need to meet. Because they know everything about the world, and I think they'll know what to do with her."
Sofía Vergara was asked to smoke regularly to get into the character of Griselda Blanco
In addition, Sofia worked as an executive producer on the miniseries. She claimed that wearing prosthetics took hours each day to change her into the title character, Griselda.
Sofia thought that in order to remain unidentifiable, she had to wear plastic all over her face, from her forehead to her eyebrows, as well as a wig, which she detested.
"I had no clue what I was doing," she revealed. "I think if I had really realized what I was gonna go through, I would have never had the balls to do it.
"The first week, I thought I was dying. First of all, three hours of hair and makeup, I had never worn prosthetics.
"I had never even smoked, and then suddenly the director is like, 'You're going to be smoking in almost every scene'. I'm like, What do you mean?"
Then the celebrity said, "I never snorted cocaine. I've never done crack. So it was kind of like nerve-wracking."
"I've never done drama. I was like, what if I have to cry in these scenes, and I'm like, It's not gonna come out. It hit me when I was ready to start filming that week," she added.
"The only good thing that was that I had never really acted in Spanish, believe it or not. So that was like such a relief. I didn't have to start to think or translate all the time," the star said.
How much does Sofía Vergara earn from 'America's Got Talent'?
Sofia joined the 'AGT' judging panel in 2020. The 'Modern Family' star reportedly earned an incredible $10 million every season, according to Forbes.
