Everything You Need To Know About Sofía Vergara’s New Series, ‘Griselda’

Sofía Vergara, the business woman and actress, best known for her role as Gloria Pritchett in the long-running ABC comedy series “Modern Family,” is returning to the small screen in January 2024 for Netflix’s bilingual “Griselda”. 

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Who was Griselda Blanco?

The six-part series follows the true story of Colombian drug lord Griselda Blanco, widely known as the “Godmother,” who was behind one of the most profitable drug cartels in history.

After immigrating from Colombia to the US, Blanco ran a notoriously ruthless and violent cocaine trade in New York and Miami in the 1970s and ’80s, until she was arrested in 1985. Blanco was the first-ever woman criminal to become a billionaire before being deported and subsequently murdered in Colombia at the age of 69 in 2012.

‘Griselda’ Netflix series

The new limited series has wrapped up production and will be coming to Netflix on January 25th, 2024. The series is created by writer-producer Eric Newman and director Andrés Baiz, both “Narcos” alums. The show will consist of six 50-minute episodes.

Netflix has released a teaser trailer for “Griselda,” which features Vergara’s voice over a montage of men: “I’ve heard that you like my product. We can make a lot of money together.” “Who is the one in charge?” one of them then asks, as the clip then cuts to the actress in character as Blanco. The production has also released some production stills featuring Vergara sporting a blonde wig and a fur coat.

“Griselda” counts Doug Miro and Carlo Bernard among its creators, who were part of the team behind Netflix hit Narcos, while Vergara is also on board as an executive producer.

Also Read: Sofía Vergara Playing A Cartel Queen is Problematic: Here’s Why

The cast of ‘Griselda’

The show also stars Alberto Guerra (“Narcos: Mexico”), Vanessa Ferlito (“NCIS: New Orleans”), Alberto Ammann (“Narcos”), Christian Tappan (“The Great Heist”), Diego Trujillo (“Metastasis”), Paulina Davila (“Luis Miguel”), Gabriel Sloyer (“Narcos”), Juliana Aidén Martinez (“The Blacklist”), Martin Rodriguez (“Detrás de la Verdad”) and José Zúñiga (“American Crime Story: Versace”).

Director Andrés Baiz told EW that this was a chance for Vergara to reinvent herself and step out of her comfort zone, which was very brave of her. At the same time, Vergara knew that while she felt insecure and afraid of this change in her career, she had to immerse herself completely into the role and push herself to the limit. She even went as far as wearing prosthetics and drastically altering her appearance. 

Blanco’s story has been told in a number of films and TV shows, including the 2018 Lifetime biopic “Cocaine Godmother,” starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, and the 2006 documentary film “Cocaine Cowboys.” However, “Griselda” is the first series to focus solely on Blanco’s life and her rise to power in the drug world.